| Vitamin
A (retinol) and its analogs, retinoids, are essential for many critical
life processes including vision, reproduction, cellular differentiation,
bone development, and apoptosis. All-trans-retinoic acid and
its isomer 9-cis-retinoic acid are biologically active metabolites
of retinol. These compounds function as ligands for retinoid receptors,
which mediate gene expression and control cellular processes throughout
an organism’s lifetime.
In recent
years, retinoids have gained much attention as chemotherapeutic agents
but are limited in their use due to toxicity. Synthetic retinoids
have been tested on a variety of cancer cell lines and have shown to have
biological activity and lower toxicity when compared to naturally occurring
retinoids. One of the projects of my laboratory is to investigate
the metabolism of these synthetic retinoids. Using lipid extraction
techniques and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), metabolites
will be extracted, separated, and isolated. The objective of these
studies is to identify new synthetic retinoid metabolites that may be more
biologically active and less toxic than previously developed retinoids.
A second
project of my laboratory is to examine retinoid metabolism and its relationship
with diabetes . Recent studies have suggested a decrease in plasma
vitamin A concentrations in individuals who are diabetic. The objective
of this project is to determine if retinoid metabolism is altered during
diabetes and if altered retinoid metabolism influences retinoid availability
and retinoid dependent cellular processes.
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