A retinoic acid-dependent checkpoint in the development of CD4+ T cell-mediated immunity

It is known that vitamin A and its metabolite, retinoic acid (RA), are essential for host defense. However, the mechanisms for how RA controls inflammation are incompletely understood. The findings presented in this study show that RA signaling occurs concurrent with the development of inflammation. In models of vaccination and allogeneic graft rejection, whole body imaging reveals that RA signaling is temporally and spatially restricted to the site of inflammation. Conditional ablation of RA signaling in T cells significantly interferes with CD4(+) T cell effector function, migration, and polarity. These findings provide a new perspective of the role of RA as a mediator directly controlling CD4(+) T cell differentiation and immunity

A retinoic acid–dependent checkpoint in the development of CD4+ T cell–mediated immunity

Immune cell activation induces concurrent temporal and spatial retinoic acid signaling, and CD4+ T cell–specific loss of RA signals reduces effector function, migration, and polarity

Role of retinoic acid in lens regeneration

Prompted by the actions of retinoids and their receptors in gene regulation, in the developing eye and especially in the lens, we have undertaken a detailed study to examine the effects of retinoids on urodele lens regeneration. First, we examined the effects of exogenous retinoids. It was found that exogenous retinoids had no significant effect on lens regeneration. However, when synthesis of retinoic acid was inhibited by disulfiram, or when the function of the retinoid receptors was impaired by using a RAR antagonist, the process of lens regeneration was dramatically affected. In the majority of the cases, lens regeneration was inhibited and lens morphogenesis was disrupted. In a few cases, we were also able to observe ectopic lens regeneration from places other than the normal site, which is from the dorsal iris. The most spectacular case was the regeneration of a lens from the cornea, an event possible only in premetamorphic frogs. These data show that inhibition of retinoid receptors is paramount for the normal course and distribution of lens regeneration. We have also examined expression of RAR-delta during lens regeneration. This receptor was expressed highly in the regenerating lens only. Therefore, it seems that this receptor is specific for the regeneration process and consequently such expression correlates well with the effects of RAR inhibition observed in our studies