Calciferol
Vitamin D is a group of structurally related, fat-soluble compounds responsible for increasing intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, along with numerous other biological functions. In humans, the most important compounds within this group are vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) and vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol). Unlike the other twelve vitamins, vitamin D is only conditionally essential, as with adequate skin exposure to the Ultraviolet#Subtypes, ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation component of sunlight there is Chemical synthesis, synthesis of cholecalciferol in the Epidermis#Layers, lower layers of the skin's epidermis. For most people, skin synthesis contributes more than diet sources. Vitamin D can also be obtained through diet, food fortification and dietary supplements. In the U.S., cow's milk and plant-based milk substitutes are fortified with vitamin D3, as are many breakfast cereals. Government dietary recommendations typically assume that all of a person's v ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cholecalciferol
Cholecalciferol, also known as vitamin D3, colecalciferol or calciol, is a type of vitamin D that is produced by the skin when exposed to UV light, UVB light; it is found in certain foods and can be taken as a dietary supplement. Cholecalciferol is synthesised in the skin following sunlight exposure. It is then converted in the liver to calcifediol (25-hydroxycholecalciferol D), which is further converted in the kidney to calcitriol (1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol D). One of calcitriol's most important functions is to promote calcium uptake by the intestines. Cholecalciferol is present in food such as fatty fish, beef liver, eggs, and cheese. In some countries, cholecalciferol is also added to products like plants, cow milk, fruit juice, yogurt, and margarine. Cholecalciferol can be taken orally as a dietary supplement to prevent vitamin D deficiency or as a medication to treat associated diseases, including rickets. It is also used in the management of familial hypophosphatem ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ergocalciferol
Ergocalciferol, also known as vitamin D2 and nonspecifically calciferol, is a type of vitamin D found in food. It is used as a dietary supplement to prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency due to poor absorption by the intestines or liver disease. It may also be used for low blood calcium due to hypoparathyroidism. It is taken by mouth or via injection into a muscle. Excessive doses can result in vitamin D toxicity causing increased urine production, high blood pressure, kidney stones, kidney failure, muscle weakness, and constipation. If high doses are taken for a long period of time, tissue calcification may occur. Normal doses are safe in pregnancy. It works by increasing the amount of calcium absorbed by the intestines and reabsorbed by the kidneys. Food in which it is found include some mushrooms. Ergocalciferol was first described in 1936. Ergocalciferol is available as a generic medication and over the counter. In 2022, it was the 38th most commonly prescribe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Calcifediol
Calcifediol, also known as calcidiol, 25-hydroxycholecalciferol, or 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (abbreviated 25(OH)D3), is a form of vitamin D produced in the liver by hydroxylation of vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) by the enzyme vitamin D 25-hydroxylase. Calcifediol can be further hydroxylated by the enzyme 25(OH)D-1α-hydroxylase, primarily in the kidney, to form calcitriol (1,25-(OH)2D3), which is the active hormonal form of vitamin D. Calcifediol is strongly bound in blood by the vitamin D-binding protein. Measurement of serum calcifediol is the usual test performed to determine a person's vitamin D status, to show vitamin D deficiency or sufficiency. Calcifediol is available as an oral medication in some countries to supplement vitamin D status. Biology Calcifediol is the precursor for calcitriol, the active form of vitamin D. It is synthesized in the liver, by hydroxylation of cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) at the 25-position. This enzymatic 25-hydroxylase reaction is mostly due t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Calcitriol
Calcitriol is a hormone and the active form of vitamin D, normally made in the kidney. It is also known as 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol. It binds to and activates the vitamin D receptor in the nucleus of the cell, which then increases the expression of many genes. Calcitriol increases blood Calcium in biology, calcium mainly by increasing the uptake of calcium from the intestines. It can be given as a medication for the treatment of hypocalcemia, low blood calcium and hyperparathyroidism due to kidney disease, low blood calcium due to hypoparathyroidism, osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and familial hypophosphatemia, and can be taken by mouth or by intravenous, injection into a vein. Excessive amounts or intake can result in weakness, headache, nausea, constipation, urinary tract infections, and abdominal pain. Serious side effects may include high blood calcium and anaphylaxis. Calcitriol was identified as the active form of vitamin D in 1971 and the drug was approved for medic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Vitamin D Deficiency
Vitamin D deficiency or hypovitaminosis D is a vitamin D level that is below normal. It most commonly occurs in people when they have inadequate exposure to sunlight, particularly sunlight with adequate ultraviolet B rays (UVB). Vitamin D deficiency can also be caused by inadequate nutritional intake of vitamin D; disorders that limit vitamin D absorption; and disorders that impair the conversion of vitamin D to active metabolites, including certain liver, kidney, and hereditary disorders. Deficiency impairs bone mineralization, leading to bone-softening diseases, such as rickets in children. It can also worsen osteomalacia and osteoporosis in adults, increasing the risk of bone fractures. Muscle weakness is also a common symptom of vitamin D deficiency, further increasing the risk of falls and bone fractures in adults. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with the development of schizophrenia. Vitamin D can be synthesized in the skin under exposure to UVB from sunlight. Oily ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Adolf Windaus
Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus (; 25 December 1876 – 9 June 1959) was a German chemist who won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1928 for his work on sterols and their relation to vitamins. He was the doctoral advisor of Adolf Butenandt who also won a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1939. Biography He was born in Berlin, Germany on 25 December 1876 to a family who owned a drapery business. He attended a prestigious French grammar school, where he focused primarily on literature. Windaus began studying medicine at the University of Berlin in about 1895 then proceeded to study chemistry at the University of Freiburg. He married Elizabeth Resau in 1915 and they had three children together, Günter, Gustav, and Margarete. After earning his PhD in medicine, Windaus became the head of the chemical institute at the University of Göttingen from 1915 to 1944. Throughout his life, Windaus won many awards including the Goethe Medal, the Pasteur Medal, and the Nobel Prize for Chemistry. In add ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rickets
Rickets, scientific nomenclature: rachitis (from Greek , meaning 'in or of the spine'), is a condition that results in weak or soft bones in children and may have either dietary deficiency or genetic causes. Symptoms include bowed legs, stunted growth, bone pain, large forehead, and trouble sleeping. Complications may include bone Deformity, deformities, bone pseudofractures and Bone fracture, fractures, muscle spasms, or an scoliosis, abnormally curved spine. The analogous condition in adults is osteomalacia. The most common cause of rickets is a hypovitaminosis D, vitamin D deficiency, although hereditary genetic forms also exist. This can result from eating a diet without enough vitamin D, dark skin, too little sun exposure, exclusive breastfeeding without vitamin D supplementation, celiac disease, and certain genetic conditions. Other factors may include not enough calcium or phosphorus. The underlying mechanism involves insufficient calcification of the growth plate. Di ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ergosterol
Ergosterol (ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3β-ol) is a mycosterol found in cell membranes of fungi and protozoa, serving many of the same functions that cholesterol serves in animal cells. Because many fungi and protozoa cannot survive without ergosterol, the enzymes that synthesize it have become important targets for drug discovery. In human nutrition, ergosterol is a provitamin form of vitamin D2; exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light causes a chemical reaction that produces vitamin D2. Role in fungi Ergosterol (ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3β-ol) is a sterol found in fungi, and named after ergot, the common name of members of the fungal genus '' Claviceps'' from which ergosterol was first isolated. Ergosterol is a component of yeast and other fungal cell membranes, serving many of the same functions that cholesterol serves in animal cells. Its specificity in higher fungi is thought to be related to the climatic instabilities (highly varying humidity and moisture conditions) encountered by ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Osteomalacia
Osteomalacia is a disease characterized by the softening of the bones caused by impaired bone metabolism primarily due to inadequate levels of available phosphate, calcium, and vitamin D, or because of resorption of calcium. The impairment of bone metabolism causes inadequate bone mineralization. Osteomalacia in children is known as rickets, and because of this, use of the term "osteomalacia" is often restricted to the milder, adult form of the disease. Signs and symptoms can include diffuse body pains, muscle weakness, and fragility of the bones. In addition to low systemic levels of circulating mineral ions (for example, caused by vitamin D deficiency or renal phosphate wasting) that result in decreased bone and tooth mineralization, accumulation of mineralization-inhibiting proteins and peptides (such as osteopontin and ASARM peptides), and small inhibitory molecules (such as pyrophosphate), can occur in the extracellular matrix of bones and teeth, contributing locally to c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |