I’m a Scientist is like school science lessons meet the X Factor! School students choose which scientist gets a prize of $1000 to communicate their work.
Scientists and students talk on this website. They both break down barriers, have fun and learn. But only the students get to vote.
This zone is the Organs Zone. It has scientists studying health and disease in various parts of our bodies. Who gets the prize? YOU decide!
Hmmm…I’m wondering if you’re thinking of vitamin C? That’s usually what people take for a cold. However, you’re right that vitamin D is critical for immune defence. If vitamin D is lacking in the blood, the killer T cells don’t activate to fight off intruders.
So since you like complex answers, here’s the real answer: when a T cell is exposed to a foreign pathogen, it extends a signaling device or ‘antenna’ known as a vitamin D receptor, with which it searches for vitamin D. This means that the T cell must have vitamin D or activation of the cell will cease. If the T cells cannot find enough vitamin D in the blood, they won’t even begin to mobilize. If you want more information, here’s the journal reference for the original research : https://www.nature.com/ni/journal/v11/n4/full/ni.1851.html
Be careful though…you can overdose on vitamin D in supplements. Just go outside and play in the sun regularly, and you’ll have all the vitamin D that your body needs!
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