Effects of vitamin A supplementation during pregnancy and early lactation on maternal weight among HIV-1-seropositive South African women were examined. Three hundred twelve HIV-seropositive pregnant women between 28 and 32 weeks gestation were studied as part of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial at the King Edward VIII Hospital in Durban, South Africa. Patients were randomiz...

Studies were conducted to explore in rats the role of retinol in the regulation of the synthesis and secretion of retinol-binding protein (RBP) by the visceral yolk sac compared to the liver. Previous studies have shown that in retinol deficiency, hepatic RBP secretion is specifically inhibited, whereas hepatic RBP synthesis rate is unchanged. Retinol-depleted, retinoic acid-supplemented female...

BACKGROUND Vitamin A (retinol), which is required for normal fetal development and successful gestation, circulates in the blood bound to a specific protein, the retinol binding protein (RBP). Little is known about the transport and metabolism of this complex protein or about retinol status during normal human pregnancy. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess retinol status and transpo...

The influence of extracellular fatty acids on the uptake and esterification of [3H]retinol bound to human retinol-binding protein (RBP), to RBP-transthyretin (TTR), or in dispersed form by the human hepatoma, HepG2, and human mammary epithelial carcinoma, MCF-7, cell lines was studied. The esterification of [3H]retinol was significantly increased in cells incubated with myristic, palmitic, stea...

The stellate cells of the liver are the main storage site of retinyl esters in the body. During cultivation in vitro of stellate cells isolated from rat and rabbit livers were observed that the cells rapidly loose their retinyl ester content. Freshly isolated stellate cells contain about 144 nmol of total retinol/mg of protein, while cells cultivated for 14 days contained below 0.1 nmol/mg of p...

BACKGROUND Lung cancer and cardiovascular disease are major causes of death in the United States. It has been proposed that carotenoids and retinoids are agents that may prevent these disorders. METHODS We conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled primary prevention trial -- the Beta Carotene and Retinol Efficacy Trial -- involving a total of 18,314 smokers, former...

Background: Zinc deficiency, common in developing countries, is associated with decreased immunocompetence. Zinc supplementation benefits children with acute and persistent diarrhea and prevents pneumonia. Most deaths from vaccine-preventable diseases are from measles and whooping cough; pneumonia is the most common complication of measles and often the proximate cause of related deaths. Object...

The relation between vitamin A (VA) nutritional status and the metabolism of all-trans-retinoic acid (RA) is not well understood. In this study, we determined the tissue distribution and metabolism of a test dose of [(3)H]-RA in rats with graded, diet-dependent, differences in VA status. The design included 3 groups, designated VA-deficient, VA-marginal, and VA-adequate, with liver total retino...

High glucose and fatty acid levels impair pancreatic beta cell function. We have recently shown that palmitate-induced loss of INS-1E insulinoma cells is related to increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production as both toxic effects are prevented by palmitoleate. Here we show that palmitate-induced ROS are mostly mitochondrial: oxidation of MitoSOX, a mitochondria-targeted superoxide probe...

Retinol plays a vital role in the immune response to infection, yet proteins that mediate retinol transport during infection have not been identified. Serum amyloid A (SAA) proteins are strongly induced in the liver by systemic infection and in the intestine by bacterial colonization, but their exact functions remain unclear. Here we show that mouse and human SAAs are retinol binding proteins. ...