Doctoral Dissertation Research: Investigating the social and developmental determinants of vitamin D production

博士论文研究：调查维生素 D 产生的社会和发展决定因素

• 批准号: 1848357
• 负责人: Thomas McDade
• 金额: $ 2.97万
• 依托单位: Northwestern University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-03-15 至 2021-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1848357&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Investigating; social

Vitamin D is vital to the function of several organs and tissues, with decreased vitamin D levels hypothesized to be a contributing factor in several disease processes. Populations in higher latitudes are more likely to have vitamin D deficiencies due to lack of sun exposure; however, recent research indicates that vitamin D deficiency has become a global phenomenon, even in countries near the equator, with women often experiencing more severe deficiency. This doctoral dissertation project applies a biocultural perspective on vitamin D production from infancy through young adulthood to investigate how societal practices and norms create and dictate the physical environments that individuals experience. By using a longitudinal data set, the study delves deeper into the possible factors that contribute to vitamin D deficiency in both men and women, and for societies undergoing urbanization. The project not only addresses the complex interplay of human biology and culture, but also has the potential to inform public health efforts to understand and address vitamin D deficiency. Biological anthropology has elaborated the tradeoffs between the need for vitamin D production and the need to avoid damage from the harmful effects of exposure to ultraviolet rays, but unanswered questions remain regarding how vitamin D is regulated and why some individuals are at risk for vitamin D deficiency. The primary focus has been on sun exposure, but other aspects of the current environment, and aspects of the environment experienced early in life, may be equally important. This study will use longitudinal data collected from the Cebu Longitudinal Health and Nutrition Survey in the Philippines to assess the effects of rapid urbanization and socioeconomic change on vitamin D production in young adulthood. A range of environmental factors early in development, and in adulthood, will be tested as predictors of circulating vitamin D. Furthermore, DNA methylation - an epigenetic process that is associated with gene expression - will be measured at sites in genes associated with vitamin D production. DNA methylation is a plausible mechanism through which environments during development can regulate genome activity in adulthood, and the study will investigate the association between environments in childhood, DNA methylation of vitamin D genes, and vitamin D production in adulthood. The use of a biocultural anthropological approach allows for an exploration of how lived experience affects vitamin D production and well-being over the life course.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

维生素 D 对多种器官和组织的功能至关重要，维生素 D 水平下降被认为是多种疾病过程的促成因素。高纬度地区的人群由于缺乏阳光照射而更容易缺乏维生素 D；然而，最近的研究表明，维生素 D 缺乏已成为一种全球现象，甚至在赤道附近的国家也是如此，女性往往缺乏更严重的维生素 D。该博士论文项目从婴儿期到青年期的维生素 D 生产应用生物文化视角，研究社会实践和规范如何创造和决定个人所经历的物理环境。通过使用纵向数据集，该研究更深入地探讨了导致男性和女性以及正在经历城市化的社会维生素 D 缺乏的可能因素。该项目不仅解决了人类生物学和文化之间复杂的相互作用，而且有可能为公共卫生工作提供信息，以了解和解决维生素 D 缺乏症。 生物人类学详细阐述了维生素 D 生成需求与避免暴露于紫外线有害影响的需求之间的权衡，但关于维生素 D 的调节方式以及为何某些人面临维生素 D 缺乏风险的问题仍然悬而未决。 。 主要关注点是阳光照射，但当前环境的其他方面以及生命早期经历的环境的各个方面可能同样重要。 本研究将使用从菲律宾宿务纵向健康和营养调查收集的纵向数据来评估快速城市化和社会经济变化对年轻人维生素 D 生产的影响。 将测试发育早期和成年期的一系列环境因素，作为循环维生素 D 的预测因子。此外，将在与维生素 D 产生相关的基因位点测量 DNA 甲基化（一种与基因表达相关的表观遗传过程） 。 DNA 甲基化是一种合理的机制，发育过程中的环境可以通过该机制调节成年期的基因组活动，该研究将调查儿童期环境、维生素 D 基因的 DNA 甲基化和成年期维生素 D 生成之间的关联。使用生物文化人类学方法可以探索生活经历如何影响生命过程中维生素 D 的产生和福祉。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的评估进行评估，被认为值得支持。影响审查标准。