Interleukin 37 Levels in Relation to Serum Vitamin D Levels Among Ain Shams University Medical Students

Abstract

The extraskeletal role of vitamin D is being increasingly recognised. This has important clinical implications, as vitamin D deficiency has reached epidemic proportions worldwide. Vitamin D has proposed anti-inflammatory properties as recent data suggests that low vitamin D concentrations are associated with increased levels of inflammatory markers. Interleukin-37 exerts anti-inflammatory effects by suppressing innate immune responses through attenuating the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-1α and IL-1β . Accumulating data suggest that IL-37 may play an important role in controlling inflammation in several inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, osteoarthritis, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease and bronchial asthma. Both expression and production of IL-37 increase following stimulation with pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-1, IL-18, TNF-α and IFN-γ, as well as various toll-like receptor ligands. The purpose of this study was to determine the relation between the level of IL-37 and 25-Hydroxy Vitamin D among Ain Shams University medical students. The study was conducted at Clinical Pathology Department, Ain Shams University Hospitals. Ninety individuals, from medical students of Ain Shams University