Vitamin C is indispensible for life: without it, an individual develops the fatal disease scurvy. We obtain all our vitamin C from out diet and several tightly regulated processes control the level of vitamin C in our bodies. One protein known to be involved in controlling vitamin C levels is Slc23a1, but the in vivo importance of this has not been determined. However, Mark Levine and colleagues, at the NIH, Bethesda, have now identified several crucial functions for Slc23a1 in mice. For example, Slc23a1 had a key role in absorption of vitamin C by the kidney and in perinatal survival. Although the data on perinatal survival are provocative, the authors warn that appropriate clinical data need to be collected before it can be determined whether low levels of vitamin C in women who are pregnant contribute to either perinatal morbidity or mortality.
TITLE: Vitamin C transporter Slc23a1 links renal reabsorption, vitamin C tissue accumulation, and perinatal survival in mice
AUTHOR CONTACT:
Mark Levine
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
Phone: 301.402.5588; Fax: 301.402.6436; E-mail: markL@mail.nih.gov.
View this article at: http://www.jci.org/articles/view/39191?key=e001e4095d59a712cded
Journal
Journal of Clinical Investigation