Sunlight exposure and cutaneous production of vitamin D in Black African/Afro-Caribbean adults

Our main source of vitamin D is through skin exposure to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) in sunlight. Vitamin D is essential for healthy bones and is associated with reduced incidence of several cancers and immune-mediated disorders. However, UK guidance on sunlight exposure geared towards skin cancer risk in light-skin people provides little to assist darker-skin people regarding sunlight exposure and their vitamin D deficiency risk. Biological and behavioural factors influence vitamin D status, with skin melanisation an important determinant. The relationship between sunlight exposure and vitamin D production in Black (skin type VI) African/Afro-Caribbean people living in the UK is poorly understood. This significant knowledge gap can be addressed through study of the impact of natural sunlight exposure on vitamin D status linked to interventional study of responses to different levels of simulated UK sunlight. This project will firstly involve a longitudinal study in UK black/dark brown-skin adults to determine seasonal vitamin D status, personal levels of sunlight exposure and lifestyle factors impacting on these. An intervention study will then determine the impact of a dose-range of simulated UK summer sunlight on vitamin D status. Longitudinal and interventional data will be compared with our published datasets in lighter skin people (white Caucasian and South Asian), to evaluate behavioural impact and biological differences respectively. This project will provide greater understanding of the relationship between sunlight exposure and skin vitamin D production in Black people. It addresses a significant knowledge gap and also an inequality in healthcare, by facilitating appropriate national guidance on sunlight exposure for this at-risk group.

This project provides training in a leading, internationally-recognised interdisciplinary environment. Training will be provided in human in vivo research (including ethical and regulatory aspects); photobiology intervention study; UVR measurement and dosimetry, and data management and analysis. The successful candidate will benefit from interactions with other researchers and group collaborators, and have the opportunity to contribute to national / international conferences and public engagement activities.

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