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עמוד בית
Thu, 05.12.24

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March 2021
Antonio Antico MD, Maria Piera Panozzo PhD, Maira Zoppelletto PhD, Valentina Di Giacomo PhD, Francesca Merola PhD, and Nicola Bizzaro MD
April 2020
Maria Infantino, Arianna Damiani, Francesca Li Gobbi, Valentina Grossi, Barbara Lari, Donatella Macchia, Patrizia Casprini, Francesca Veneziani, Danilo Villalta, Nicola Bizzaro, Piero Cappelletti, Martina Fabris, Luca Quartuccio, Maurizio Benucci and Mariangela Manfredi
August 2019
Maria Infantino MD, Teresa Carbone BD, Mariangela Manfredi BD, Valentina Grossi BD, Maurizio Benucci MD, Miri Blank PhD, Yehuda Shoenfeld MD FRCP MaACR and Nicola Bizzaro MD
July 2017
Giorgia Bizzaro, Antonio Antico, Antonio Fortunato and Nicola Bizzaro

Vitamin D deficiency is becoming an increasing problem worldwide. It should not be underestimated, not only due to the well-known consequences vitamin D deficiency has on bone health, but primarily because recent studies have shown how the biologically active form of vitamin D – 1,25(OH)2D – is involved in many biological processes, including immune system modulation. Moreover, the presence of a vitamin D receptor was discovered in almost all immune cells and some of its polymorphisms were found to be associated with increased incidence of autoimmune diseases. This finding led to a proposed link between vitamin D deficiency and autoimmune diseases. Patients affected by various autoimmune diseases showed low levels of vitamin D. However, it is not always clear whether vitamin D deficiency is the cause or rather a consequence of the disease. Limitations of the studies, such as the small number of patients, heterogeneity of selected groups, environmental conditions, methods used to measure vitamin D serum concentration and other confounding factors do not lead to unequivocal results to demonstrate a direct link between low vitamin D levels and autoimmune disease. Therefore, randomized trials are needed to clarify conflicting results.

January 2008
Y. Shoenfeld, M. Blank, M. Abu-Shakra, H. Amital, O. Barzilai, Y. Berkun, N. Bizzaro, B. Gilburd, G. Zandman-Goddard, U. Katz, I. Krause, P. Langevitz, I.R. Mackay, H. Orbach, M. Ram, Y. Sherer, E. Toubi and M.E. Gershwin
V. Pordeus, O. Barzilai, Y. Sherer, R.R. Luiz, M. Blank, N. Bizzaro, D. Villalta, J-M. Anaya and Y. Shoenfeld


Background: Infectious agents are important in the pathogenesis of autoimmune disease since they are a major part of the environmental trigger of autoimmunity. A negative relationship between latitude and infectious disease species richness has been suggested.

Objectives: To examine whether their prevalence differs in two latitudinally different populations.

Methods: The prevalence of infections with Toxoplasma gondii, rubella virus, cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus and Treponema pallidum was compared between subjects from Italy and Colombia.

Results: We found high titers of antibodies against four of five microorganisms tested, Toxoplasma gondii (50.8%), rubella virus (German measles) (75%), cytomegalovirus (86.3%), Epstein-Barr virus (83.3%) and Treponema pallidum (6.3%) in completely healthy individuals from a tropical country (Colombia) and a European country (Italy). Differences between two groups of volunteers were noted regarding two infectious agents. The prevalence of immunoglobulin G anti-rubella antibodies was significantly higher among Italian subjects (85% vs. 67.9%, P = 0.002), whereas antibodies against CMV[1] were less prevalent among Italian as compared to Colombian subjects (77% vs. 92.9%, P < 0.001).

Conclusions: These differences might also result in a different tendency towards development of autoimmune diseases associated with these infectious agents in different populations.






[1] CMV = cytomegalovirus


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