How does retinoic acid enter cells?

How does retinoic acid enter cells?

In cells, retinoic acid enters the nucleus where it binds to heterodimers formed by two different classes of nuclear receptors: Retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and retinoid X receptor (RXRs).

Is retinoic acid A signaling molecule?

Retinoic acid (RA) was first implicated as a signalling molecule on the basis of its teratogenic effects on limb patterning.

What type of receptor is retinoic acid receptor?

The retinoic acid receptor (RAR) is a type of nuclear receptor which can also act as a transcription factor that is activated by both all-trans retinoic acid and 9-cis retinoic acid. There are three retinoic acid receptors (RAR), RAR-alpha, RAR-beta, and RAR-gamma, encoded by the RARA, RARB, RARG genes, respectively.

What do retinoic acid receptors do?

Retinoic acid receptors (RARs) are nuclear transcription factors that, once activated by retinoic acid (RA), regulate the expression of RA target genes, leading to changes in cell differentiation, cell proliferation, and apoptosis.

Which gene does retinoic acid activate when it enters cell?

Cellular retinoic acid-binding protein (CRABP) facilitates transportation of atRA into the nucleus where atRA binds its receptors. The ternary complex of ligand-bound RAR and RXR binds to the retinoic acid response element (RARE) and activates the RA target genes.

How does retinoic acid work on the skin?

Retinoids reduce fine lines and wrinkles by increasing the production of collagen. They also stimulate the production of new blood vessels in the skin, which improves skin color. Additional benefits include fading age spots and softening rough patches of skin.

Which gene does retinoic acid activate?

It has been shown that stimulated by RA gene 6 (STRA6), a member of a large group of “stimulated by RA” genes encoding transmembrane proteins and proteins with unknown functions, acts as a high-affinity cell-surface receptor for RBP and mediates the uptake of retinol from RBP by peripheral cells [26,27].

What is the retinoic acid response element?

RARs have functional domains for retinoic acid binding, dimerization, and transactivation. RA response elements (RARE) found in the promoters of many genes consist of variable direct repeats of the sequence PuGGTCA spaced by five nucleotides (DR5). We have identified a novel DR5 element in the human ets-1 promoter.

Is retinoic acid a transcription factor?

The retinoic acid receptors are transcription factors which bind as RAR-RXR heterodimers to particular sequences, the retinoic acid response elements (RAREs) in the regulatory region of specific target genes (Figure 1).

Which gene does retinoic acid activate when it enters cells?

How does retinoic acid affect gene expression?

All-trans retinoic acid (RA, ATRA) is a pleiotropic activation factor that regulates genes associated with normal vertebrate cellular processes such as cell differentiation, cell proliferation, apoptosis, and embryonic development.

How does retinoic acid cause differentiation?

Retinoids generated by one cell type can affect nearby cells, so retinoids also function in intercellular communication. RA induces differentiation primarily by binding to RARs, transcription factors that associate with RXRs and bind RAREs in the nucleus.