Long known as the âsunshine vitaminâ because the body makes it when skin is exposed to sunlight, vitamin D might now be dubbed the âsuperstar vitamin,â judging by the amount of attention it has garnered of late from researchers and the general public.
Clinical Information Discusses physiology, pathophysiology, and general clinical aspects, as they relate to a laboratory test. Vitamin B12 deficiency can be caused by many factors, one of which is pernicious anemia, a condition resulting in deficient production of intrinsic factor in the parietal cells of the stomach. Intrinsic factor is a protein that is needed to assist in the absorption of vitamin B12 into the small intestine.
Pernicious anemia is a type of anemia (reduced number of red blood cells or hemoglobin in the body) due to the body's inability to absorb vitamin B-12 from the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms from anemia are a result of the decreased capacity of the blood to carry oxygen and include fatigue and shortness of breath.In addition, the deficiency of vitamin B-12 also can damage the nervous system. Vitamin B-12 is also known as cobalamin (Cbl).ernicious anemia is a form of megaloblastic anemia. Megaloblastic anemia is characterized by an abnormally large size of red blood cell (megaloblast) that is formed by the bone marrow when vitamin B-12 or folic acid levels are low.