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Vitamin D and immunity

The active form of vitamin D has an important role in calcium metabolism and in bone mineralisation, but the evidence for other health outcomes is mixed,...

Vitamin D status and predictors of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations in Western Australian adolescents

Using prospective data from the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort (Raine) Study, we investigated vitamin D status and predictors of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin...

Low maternal serum vitamin D during pregnancy and the risk for postpartum depression symptoms

Pregnancy is a time of vulnerability for vitamin D insufficiency, and there is an emerging literature associating low levels of 25(OH)-vitamin D with...

Immune cell trafficking from the brain maintains CNS immune tolerance

Evaluation of fluorescently labeled leukocyte migration in mice revealed that DCs travel via the RMS from the CNS to the cervical LNs (CxLNs), where they...

FcgammaRIIb Expression Is Decreased on Naive and Marginal Zone-Like B Cells From Females With Multiple Sclerosis

B cells are critical to the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), but the mechanisms by which they contribute to the disease are poorly defined. We hypothesised that the expression of CD32b (FcγRIIb), a receptor for the Fc region of IgG with inhibitory activities in B cells, is lower on B cell subsets from people with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) or MS. CD32b expression was highest on post-naive IgM+ B cell subsets in healthy controls. For females with MS or CIS, significantly lower CD32b expression was identified on IgM+ B cell subsets, including naive and IgMhi MZ-like B cells, when compared with control females. Lower CD32b expression on these B cell subsets was associated with detectable anti-Epstein Barr Virus viral capsid antigen IgM antibodies, and higher serum levels of B cell activating factor. To investigate the effects of lower CD32b expression, B cells were polyclonally activated in the presence of IgG immune complexes, with or without a CD32b blocking antibody, and the expression of TNF and IL-10 in B cell subsets was assessed.

IgG3 + B cells are associated with the development of multiple sclerosis

We have identified previously uncharacterised subsets of IgG3 + B cells and shown them to correlate with autoimmune attacks on the central nervous system

Low-dose UV radiation before running wheel access activates brown adipose tissue

When combined with physical activity, low-dose UVR may more effectively limit adiposity and modulate metabolic and immune pathways in iBAT

Effects of UVR exposure on the gut microbiota of mice and humans

Both human and murine studies report that multiple exposures to sub-erythemal UV radiation can increase the diversity of the gut microbiome

Vitamin D metabolites are lower with active Crohn’s disease and spontaneously recover with development of remission

We aimed to characterise vitamin D metabolism in a cohort of patients with active and inactive Crohn’s disease