ISSN:
0730-2312
Keywords:
vitamin D calcitriol
;
bone
;
genetics
;
steroid hormone receptor
;
vitamin D receptor
;
retinoic acid receptor
;
calcium
;
homeostasis
;
calcitonin
;
parathyroid hormone
;
Life and Medical Sciences
;
Cell & Developmental Biology
Source:
Wiley InterScience Backfile Collection 1832-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Medicine
Notes:
The vitamin D endocrine system is central to the control of bone and calcium homeostasis. The active hormonal aform of vitamin D, 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D (calcitriol), the circulating level of which is tightly regulated, acts through a specific receptor to mediate its genomic actions on almost every aspect of calcium homeostasis. Because of its transactivation function, it possible that a small difference in vitamin D receptor level could be amplified into a biologically significant alteration in physiological setpoint. The recent finding that polymorphisms in the vitamin D receptor gene are predictive of bone density (morrison et al., Nature 367:284-287, 1994) is the first example of an allelic effect in such a homeostatically controlled system. This raises the possibility that such central operators may exist in other regulatory pathways, and could expllain a large part of the observed “ormal” population distribution that exists for all physiological paraameters.
Additional Material:
2 Ill.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jcb.240560306
