SARS-CoV-2 pneumonitis can quickly strike to incapacitate the lung, leading to severe disease and sometimes death. In this perspective, we suggest that vitamin D deficiency and the failure to activate the vitamin D receptor (VDR) can aggravate this respiratory syndrome by igniting a wounding response in stellate cells of the lung. The FDA-approved injectable vitamin D analog, paricalcitol, suppresses stellate cell-derived murine hepatic and pancreatic pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic changes. Therefore, we suggest a possible parallel program in the pulmonary stellate cells of COVID-19 patients and propose repurposing paricalcitol infusion therapy to restrain the COVID-19 cytokine storm. This proposed therapy could prove important to people of color who have higher COVID-19 mortality rates and lower vitamin D levels.

SARS-CoV-2 肺炎可迅速侵袭肺部，导致肺部功能丧失，导致严重疾病，有时甚至死亡。从这个角度来看，我们认为维生素 D 缺乏和维生素 D 受体 (VDR) 激活失败可能会引发肺部星状细胞的损伤反应，从而加剧这种呼吸综合征。 FDA 批准的注射维生素 D 类似物帕立骨化醇可抑制星状细胞源性小鼠肝脏和胰腺的促炎症和促纤维化变化。因此，我们建议在 COVID-19 患者的肺星状细胞中进行可能的并行计划，并建议重新利用帕立骨化醇输注疗法来抑制 COVID-19 细胞因子风暴。这种拟议的疗法可能对 COVID-19 死亡率较高且维生素 D 水平较低的有色人种很重要。