Submit to Nutrients Review for Nutrients Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Micronutrients and Human Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (5 September 2025) | Viewed by 27378

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Istvan Takacs

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Internal Medicine and Oncology, Semmelweis University Faculty of Medicine, 2/a Korányi S. Str, 1083, Budapest, Hungary
Interests: calcium metabolism; bone metabolism; genetics of bone diseases; vitamin D metabolism; pathophysiology; genetic of thyroid diseases; general health sciences; theoretical medicine
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Vitamin D deficiency has a high prevalence worldwide. Endeavors to ameliorate this public health problem are challenged mostly by the heterogeneity of nutritional and clinical vitamin D guidelines. The importance of vitamin D goes far beyond musculoskeletal health. As the vitamin D receptor (VDR) is expressed in the majority of human cells, it has been proposed that vitamin D may have a more widespread role in general health. This is supported by several experimental and epidemiological studies. The general dilemma regarding the potential extra-skeletal health benefits of vitamin D is that the vitamin D requirements for skeletal health may be fulfilled at lower or higher 25(OH)D concentrations than the requirements for certain extra-skeletal health benefits. Recent large vitamin D RCTs failed to document significant benefits regarding their primary outcomes, including mortality, cancer, or cardiovascular diseases, but these trials enrolled populations that were, by a vast majority, not vitamin D deficient.

This Special Issue will include manuscripts that focus on the assessment of vitamin D status (i.e., deficiency/normal/high level) and investigate the associations or causal relationships with any health benefit or disease outcome. Additionally, we accept studies regarding the investigation of vitamin D supplementation in healthy individuals or in patient populations with vitamin D deficiency compared to those of normal vitamin D status.

Dr. Istvan Takacs
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

25(OH)D level
1,25(OH)2D level
vitamin D deficiency
vitamin D supplementation
treatment
prevention

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers

Order results

Result details

Show export options Show export options

Select all

Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review, Other

15 pages, 2096 KB

Open AccessArticle

Reducing Storage-Related Bias in Reproductive Vitamin D Research: Towards a Stable and Reliable Biomarker of Ovarian Vitamin D Status

by Evelin E. Lara-Molina, Jason M. Franasiak, Almudena Devesa-Peiro, Marina López-Nogueroles, Alberto Vázquez, David Amorós, Agustín Ballesteros, Antonio Pellicer, Patricia Sebastian-Leon and Patricia Diaz-Gimeno

Nutrients 2025, 17(23), 3783; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17233783 - 2 Dec 2025

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 599

Abstract

Background/Objectives: One of the main reasons for discrepancies in the role of vitamin D in ART could be the measurement of the conventional biomarker 25(OH)D₃. It is known that this value is affected by multiple factors, such as tissue origin, assay variability, classification criteria, and potential storage-related degradation. In this study, we investigate 24,25(OH)₂D₃ as a new biomarker to improve vitamin D assessment in women’s reproductive health, particularly regarding oocyte development. Methods: A prospective cohort study including 35 oocyte donors undergoing controlled ovarian stimulation, who were recruited between October and November 2017, was conducted. Vitamin D metabolites were measured at the baseline and after seven months of storage at −80 °C. Paired serum and pooled follicular fluid (FF) samples were collected at oocyte retrieval. 25(OH)D₃ and 24,25(OH)₂D₃ were quantified by ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC–MS/MS). Statistical analyses included paired tests (serum vs. FF; baseline vs. stored) and Pearson’s correlations (two-sided α = 0.05). Results: At the baseline, the mean serum 25(OH)D₃ concentration was 91.56 ± 39.01 nmol/L and the mean FF concentration was 58.13 ± 19.55 nmol/L (p < 0.0001). Serum 24,25(OH)₂D₃ averaged 15.62 ± 10.99 nmol/L, compared with 11.26 ± 6.09 nmol/L in FF (p = 0.004). In both fluids, 25(OH)D₃ and 24,25(OH)₂D₃ were strongly correlated (serum R² = 0.92; FF R² = 0.91). Across fluids, the serum–FF correlation was stronger for 24,25(OH)₂D₃ (R² = 0.77, p <0.0001) than for 25(OH)D₃ (R² = 0.69, p < 0.0001). After seven months of storage, 25(OH)D₃ concentrations decreased significantly (serum −32%; FF −38%; both p < 0.0001), whereas 24,25(OH)₂D₃ levels remained stable (serum p = 0.24; FF p = 0.36). Conclusions: Serum 24,25(OH)₂D₃ is a more reliable and minimally invasive biomarker for assessing ovarian vitamin D status than the current gold standard, 25(OH)D₃. Incorporating this metabolite into research studies and storage quality control may improve the reliability of retrospective analyses based on cryopreserved material, contributing to a better understanding of the role of vitamin D in human reproduction. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 1020 KB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Moderately High-Dose Vitamin D3 Supplementation on Mortality in Patients Hospitalized for COVID-19 Infection

by Liza Dalma Sümegi, Marina Varga, Veronika Kadocsa, Balázs Szili, Márk Stempler, Péter András Lakatos, Zsuzsanna Németh and István Takács

Nutrients 2025, 17(3), 507; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17030507 - 30 Jan 2025

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 7118

Abstract

Background: Despite a large number of published studies, the effect of vitamin D3 supplementation on mortality in hospitalized patients, as well as the recommended dose and duration of therapy, is unclear. In our retrospective study, we aimed to investigate the impact of vitamin D deficiency and moderately high-dose vitamin D3 supplementation on mortality and disease outcomes in patients with COVID-19 infection. Methods: We analyzed data from 148 COVID-19-infected hospitalized patients in two different departments, Internal Medicine and Oncology, at Semmelweis University. The severity of COVID-19 and the treatment used were the same except at one of the departments, where patients received circa 90,000 IU of vitamin D3. We compared in-hospital mortality rates between the groups. In a subgroup analysis, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of vitamin D3 supplementation by assessing 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)₂D concentrations on days 0, 4, and 8. Results: As a result of the supplementation, the deficiency was resolved in 4 days in deficient patients, and none of the 25(OH)D or 1,25(OH)₂D concentrations exceeded the normal range. Mortality was significantly lower and decreased 67% in the group receiving vitamin D3 supplementation, regardless of baseline 25(OH)D concentrations. Conclusions: The supplemental dosage, 3 × 30,000 IU of vitamin D3, is effective and safe and may reduce mortality in COVID-19 infection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research, Other

18 pages, 2532 KB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Vitamin D: Beyond Traditional Roles—Insights into Its Biochemical Pathways and Physiological Impacts

by Vlad Mihai Voiculescu, Andreea Nelson Twakor, Nicole Jerpelea and Anca Pantea Stoian

Nutrients 2025, 17(5), 803; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17050803 - 26 Feb 2025

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 14336

Abstract

Background: It is true that vitamin D did not earn its title as the “sunshine vitamin” for nothing. In recent years, however, there has been a shift in the perception surrounding vitamin D to a type of hormone that boasts countless bioactivities and health advantages. Historically, vitamin D has been known to take care of skeletal integrity and the calcium–phosphorus balance in the body, but new scientific research displays a much larger spectrum of actions handled by this vitamin. Materials and Methods: A systematic literature search was performed using the following electronic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library. Results: Many emerging new ideas, especially concerning alternative hormonal pathways and vitamin D analogs, are uniformly challenging the classic “one hormone–one receptor” hypothesis. To add more context to this, the vitamin D receptor (VDR) was previously assumed to be the only means through which the biologically active steroid 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 could impact the body. Two other molecules apart from the active hormonal form of 1,25(OH)2D3 have gained interest in recent years, and these have reinvigorated research on D3 metabolism. These metabolites can interact with several other nuclear receptors (like related orphan receptor alpha—RORα, related orphan receptor gamma—RORγ, and aryl hydrocarbon receptor—AhR) and trigger various biological responses. Conclusions: This paper thus makes a case for placing vitamin D at the forefront of new holistic and dermatological health research by investigating the potential synergies between the canonical and noncanonical vitamin D pathways. This means that there are now plentiful new opportunities for manipulating and understanding the full spectrum of vitamin D actions, far beyond those related to minerals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Other

Jump to: Research, Review

14 pages, 1266 KB

Open AccessSystematic Review

Influence of Vitamin D on Developmental Defects of Enamel (DDE) in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

by Paula Piekoszewska-Ziętek, Karolina Spodzieja and Dorota Olczak-Kowalczyk

Nutrients 2025, 17(8), 1317; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17081317 - 10 Apr 2025

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 4641

Abstract

Background/Objectives: This systematic review aims to investigate the potential association between vitamin D levels and the occurrence of developmental enamel defects (DDE) in children, including conditions like molar–incisor hypomineralization (MIH) and hypomineralized second primary molars (HSPMs). DDEs, which occur during tooth development, can result in significant aesthetic and functional issues, and their exact etiology remains unclear, with both genetic and environmental factors contributing. Among environmental factors, vitamin D deficiency has been proposed as a possible risk factor, given its role in enamel mineralization. Methods: A thorough literature search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. The search strategy included terms such as “vitamin D”, “vitamin D deficiency”, “developmental defects of enamel”, “enamel hypoplasia”, “molar-incisor hypomineralization”, and “hypomineralized second primary molars”. Studies were included if they were original human observational research (cohort, case–control, or cross-sectional) conducted in children under 18 years of age or involving maternal–child cohorts. Ten studies were included in the analysis, with a total of 15,891 participants. The primary data extracted from the selected studies included the following: study design, participants’ age, sample size, vitamin D status in relation to developmental defects of enamel, and statistical significance Results: The findings were mixed, with only a few studies suggesting a significant association between low vitamin D levels and the presence of DDEs. Specifically, one study found a link between insufficient maternal vitamin D levels during pregnancy and an increased number of teeth affected by MIH in children. However, the majority of the studies did not report a significant association. Conclusions: This review concludes that while there is some evidence to suggest a possible relationship between vitamin D and DDEs, more research is needed to confirm these findings and better understand the underlying mechanisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health)

► Show Figures

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Assessment of Vitamin D Status and Intake in Human Health

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

Research

Review

Other

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI