We previously demonstrated that all-trans retinoic acid (RA) preserves glomerular structure and function in anti-Thy1.1 nephritis (Wagner J, Dechow C, Morath C, Lehrke I, Amann K, Floege J, and Ritz E. J Am Soc Nephrol 11: 1479-1489, 2000). Because the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) contributes to renal damage, we 1) studied retinoid-specific effects on its components and 2) compared the effect...

Vitamin A, via retinoic acid (RA), is a critical micronutrient. Normally, plasma concentrations are tightly regulated. Concentrations of vitamin A metabolites (13cis-RA, atRA) and relationships between RBP4 and retinoids have never been fully evaluated in adult patients with CKD. We measured retinoid and RBP4 concentrations in plasma and urine from 55 adult patients with CKD and 21 matched heal...

Retinoic acid (RA), through nuclear retinoid receptors, regulates the expression of numerous genes. However, little is known of the biochemical mechanisms that regulate RA concentration in vivo. CYP26 (P450RAI), a novel cytochrome P450, is expressed during embryonic development, induced by all-trans RA, and capable of catalyzing the oxidation of [3H]RA to polar retinoids including 4-oxo-RA. Her...

Because retinoic acid (RA) exerts a stimulatory effect on macrophages and tubercle bacilli target alveolar macrophages, the therapeutic potential of RA was examined in rats with tuberculosis. In the main study, 15 rats were randomized to treatment with oil (control) or RA, 100 microg/100 g body weight per dose, given 3 times weekly for 3 and 5 wk after infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis ...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES It has been known that the dominant driver of atrial fibrillation (AF) exists in the left atrium (LA) and the incidence of systemic thromboembolism is higher than that of pulmonary thromboembolism in patients with AF. Therefore, we hypothesized that histological and biochemical characteristics of the LA and the right atrium (RA) are different in patients with mitral va...

Perilla frutescens var. acuta Kudo (PF) is a traditional Korean medicinal herb for allergic reaction regulation. In the present study, we investigated the effect of 30% ethanol extract powder of PF (EPPF) and rosmarinic acid (RA), the active compound of EPPF on various allergic reactions using in vivo and in vitro models. EPPF and RA significantly inhibited compound 48/48-induced systemic anaph...

Prunella vulgaris L. is an important medicinal plant with a variety of pharmacological activities, but limited information is available about its response to potassium chloride (KCl) supplementation. P. vulgaris seedlings were cultured in media with four different KCl levels (0, 1.00, 6.00 and 40.00 mM). Characteristics relating to the growth, foliar potassium, water and chlorophyll content, ph...

Vitamin A (retinol) is an essential precursor for the production of retinoic acid (RA), which in turn is a major regulator of gene expression, affecting cell differentiation throughout the body. Understanding how vitamin A nutritional status, as well as therapeutic retinoid treatment, regulates the expression of retinoid homeostatic genes is important for improvement of dietary recommendations ...

CONTEXT Prunella vulgaris L. (Labiatae) is a perennial plant common in China and Europe and is rich in rosmarinic acid (RA), ursolic acid (UA), and oleanolic acid (OA). The dried spica of P. vulgaris has been used as traditional medicine in China for over a hundred years. To our best knowledge, no study has been conducted to determine the influence of harvesting time on concentrations of bioact...