Retinoids exert antiproliferative and prodifferentiating effects in vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) and reduce neointimal mass in balloon-injured blood vessels. The mechanisms through which retinoids carry out these effects are unknown but likely involve retinoid receptor-mediated changes in gene expression. Here we report the cloning, chromosomal mapping, and biological activity of the ret...

Retinoid-binding proteins are essential mediators of vitamin A function in vertebrate organisms. They solubilize and stabilize retinoids, and they direct the intercellular and intracellular trafficking, transport, and metabolic function of vitamin A compounds in vision and in growth and development. Although many soluble retinoid-binding proteins and receptors have been purified and extensively...

In this issue of Clinical Cancer Research , Li et al. investigate the chemopreventive potential of the retinoid, LG100268 (1). The application of retinoids to cancer chemoprevention has a long history which predates the identification of retinoid receptors (2, 3). Early clinical trials evaluated vitamin A derivatives, such as 13-cis-retinoic acid (13-cis-RA), all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), and...

All-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) and its associated analogues are important mediators of cell differentiation and function during the development of the nervous system. It is well known that ATRA can induce the differentiation of neural tissues from human pluripotent stem cells. However, it is not always appreciated that ATRA is highly susceptible to isomerisation when in solution, which can infl...

Although retinoids have been reported to be present and active in vertebrates and invertebrates, the presence of mechanisms for retinoid storage in the form of retinyl esters, a key feature to maintain whole-organism retinoid homeostasis, have been considered to date a vertebrate innovation. Here we demonstrate for the first time the presence of retinol and retinyl esters in an invertebrate lop...

BACKGROUND Ovarian cancer is frequently lethal despite aggressive multimodal therapy, and new therapies are therefore needed. Retinoids are potential candidate drugs: they prevent the development of ovarian carcinoma and enhance the efficacy of cytotoxic drugs in ovarian cancer cells. At present, little is known about the retinoid receptor expression in ovarian cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS Th...

BACKGROUND Retinoids regulate key developmental pathways throughout life, and have potential uses for differentiation therapy. It should be possible to identify novel retinoids by coupling new chemical reactions with screens using the zebrafish embryonic model. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We synthesized novel retinoid analogues and derivatives by amide coupling, obtaining 80-92% yields. A small librar...

Dietary deficiency in the retinoid precursors of the visual pigment chromophore 11-cis-retinal eventually results in selective degeneration of the photoreceptor cells of the vertebrate retina. Early effects of retinoid deficiency are depletion of rhodopsin from the retina and vesiculation of the photoreceptor outer segment disc membranes. Experiments were conducted to determine whether these ea...