Description
All-trans retinol is a diterpenoid component of vitamin A. This compound is an essential vitamin and is necessary for effective vision, skin health, and bone growth. Retinol and its metabolites activate retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and retinoid X receptors (RXRs), both of which have multiple isotypes and isoforms. During fetal development, retinol influences cellular differentiation in a variety of ways. Retinol also plays a role in cancer stem cell differentiation, mediated through ERK1/2 signaling. In the immune system, retinol appears to play a protective role in autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and encephalopathy, downregulating pro-inflammatory responses stimulated by Th1 and Th17 cells.
References
Friedman MD, Jeevan DS, Tobias M, et al. Targeting cancer stem cells in glioblastoma multiforme using mTOR inhibitors and the differentiating agent all-trans retinoic acid. Oncol Rep. 2013 Oct;30(4):1645-50. PMID: 23877261.
Farhangi MA, Keshavarz SA, Eshraghian M, et al. Vitamin a supplementation and serum Th1- and th4-associated cytokine response in women. J Am Coll Nutr. 2013 Aug;32(4):280-5. PMID: 24024773.
Sharma RB, Wang Q, Khillan JS. Amplification of tumor inducing putative cancer stem cells (CSCs) by vitamin A/retinol from mammary tumors. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2013 Jul 12;436(4):625-31. PMID: 23764401.
Zhan XX, Liu Y, Yang JF, et al. All-trans-retinoic acid ameliorates experimental allergic encephalomyelitis by affecting dendritic cell and monocyte development. Immunology. 2013 Apr;138(4):333-45. PMID: 23181351.
Duester G. Retinoic acid synthesis and signaling during early organogenesis. Cell. 2008 Sep 19;134(6):921-31. PMID: 18805086.
