Abstract

VITAMIN D AND ITS PHYTO-DERIVED MIMETICS AMELIORATE VERTIGO AND ASSOCIATED SYSTEMIC DISORDERS:

*Stephen E. O. Oriaifo, Adeboriota Folashade Ajimakin, Osuare Odion Oyakhire

ABSTRACT

Four case reports are presented which may underline the useful role of vitamin D3 receptor agonists/mimetics and non-addictive flumazenil-insensitive GABAergic enhancers in the management of central and peripheral vertigo. Turmeric, lemon-ginger and black pepper teas; chamomile, strawberry and green teas; rosemary, chamomile teas + tadalafil; turmeric, strawberry teas + vitamin D3were administered to 1-4 patients respectively.Their effect on vertigo/dizziness, infection incidence, MMSE, and other selected neuro-cardio-metabolic parameters were assessed at 3 and 6 months. Although all the treatments had noted significant effects, the 4th treatment most significantly (DMR) at 6-months (P < 0.05) reduced BMI, mean arterialpressure (MAP), FBS, total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglycerides, perceived stress scale (PSS) score, dizziness handicap inventory (DHI) score; and most significantly increased HDL-C, 10-item Connors-Davidson resilience score and visual acuity, with improvement in MMSE accompanied with decreased incidence of URTIs. With increased stress, ageing and central nervous pathologies, there may be decrease of vitamin D receptor responsiveness coupled with depreciation of the GABAergic/glutamatergic ratio. This imbalance of inhibitory- to -excitatory coupling is known to be a causative factor in vertigo/dizziness, and neurodevelopmental/neuropsychiatric/neurodegenerative diseases. Tea forms of phyto- derived GABAergic enhancers or vitamin D3-mimetics which are safe and non-addictive with or without vitamin D supplementation upregulate the VDR-GABA-NO-cGMP-PKG pathway and may prove to be additive to present agents for treatment not only of vertigo but also for attenuation of endothelial-/neuronal dysfunction - mediated aetiologically-confounding systemic disorders crucial in vertigo causation. These mediators of the pro-survival VDR- GABA-eNOS-cGMP-PKG signalling pathway may be the „GABA therapy‟ and „fountain of youth‟/‟dew of youth‟ restorative for their unique role in whole body- homeostasis that is dependent on an efficient brain-organ interaction implicated in regulation of the neuro-endocrine-immune-metabolic network; and thus deserve compelling attention.

Keywords: Vertigo, GABA, VDR, eNOS, cGMP, Phyto-derived vitamin D mimetics.