Reduced Carotenoid and Retinoid Concentrations and Altered Lycopene Isomer Ratio in Plasma of Atopic Dermatitis Patients

Carotenoids and retinoids are known to alter the allergic response with important physiological roles in the skin and the immune system. In the human organism various carotenoids are present, some of which are retinoid precursors. The bioactive derivatives of these retinoids are the retinoic acids, which can potently activate nuclear hormone receptors such as the retinoic acid receptor and the retinoid X receptor. In this study, we aimed to assess how plasma carotenoid and retinoid concentrations along with the ratio of their isomers are altered in atopic dermatitis (AD) patients (n = 20) compared to healthy volunteers (HV, n = 20). The study indicated that plasma levels of the carotenoids lutein (HV 198 ± 14 ng/mL, AD 158 ± 12 ng/mL, p = 0.02; all values in mean ± SEM), zeaxanthin (HV 349 ± 30 ng/mL, AD 236 ± 18 ng/mL, p ≤ 0.01), as well as the retinoids retinol (HV 216 ± 20 ng/mL, AD 167 ± 17 ng/mL, p = 0.04) and all-trans-retinoic acid (HV 1.1 ± 0.1 ng/mL, AD 0.7 ± 0.1 ng/mL, p = 0.04) were significantly lower in the AD-patients, while lycopene isomers, α-carotene, and β-carotene levels were comparable to that determined in the healthy volunteers. In addition, the ratios of 13-cis- vs. all-trans-lycopene (HV 0.31 ± 0.01, AD 0.45 ± 0.07, p = 0.03) as well as 13-cis- vs. all-trans-retinoic acid (HV 1.4 ± 0.2, AD 2.6 ± 0.6, p = 0.03) were increased in the plasma of AD-patients indicating an AD-specific 13-cis-isomerisation. A positive correlation with SCORAD was calculated with 13-cis- vs. all-trans-lycopene ratio (r = 0.40, p = 0.01), while a negative correlation was observed with zeaxanthin plasma levels (r = −0.42, p = 0.01). Based on our results, we conclude that in the plasma of AD-patients various carotenoids and retinoids are present at lower concentrations, while the ratio of selected lycopene isomers also differed in the AD-patient group. An increase in plasma isomers of both lycopene and retinoic acid may cause an altered activation of nuclear hormone receptor signaling pathways and thus may be partly responsible for the AD-phenotype.

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Reduced Carotenoid and Retinoid Concentrations and Altered Lycopene Isomer Ratio in Plasma of Atopic Dermatitis Patients

10.20944/preprints201807.0413.v1 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Renata Lucas ◽

Johanna Mihaly ◽

Gordon M. Lowe ◽

Daniel L. Graham ◽

Monika Szklenar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atopic Dermatitis ◽

Retinoic Acid ◽

Plasma Levels ◽

Hormone Receptors ◽

Retinoic Acid Receptor ◽

Nuclear Hormone Receptor ◽

Human Organism ◽

Isomer Ratio ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid

In the human organism various carotenoids are present of which, some are retinoid precursors. The bioactive derivatives of these retinoids are the retinoic acids, which can potently activate nuclear hormone receptors like the retinoic acid receptor and the retinoid X receptor. In our study using an HPLC analytical approach we aimed to assess how plasma carotenoid and retinoid concentrations along with the ratio of their isomers are altered in atopic dermatitis (AD) patients (n=20) compared to healthy volunteers (HV, n=20). We found that plasma levels of the carotenoids lutein (HV 198 ± 68 ng/ml, AD 158 ± 57 ng/ml), zeaxanthin (HV 350 ± 142 ng/ml, AD 236 ± 85) as well as the retinoids retinol (HV 216 ± 89 ng/ml, AD 167 ± 76 ng/ml) and all-trans-retinoic acid (HV 1.1 ± 0.6 ng/ml, AD 0.7 ± 0.5 ng/ml) were significantly lower in AD-patients, while lycopene, α-carotene and β-carotene levels were comparable. In addition the ratios of 13-cis vs. all-trans lycopene as well as 13-cis vs. all-trans retinoic acid were increased in the plasma of AD-patients indicating an AD-specific 13C-isomerisation. A positive correlation with SCORRAD was calculated with 13-cis vs. all-trans lycopene ratio, while a negative correlation was observed with zeaxanthin plasma levels. Based on our results we conclude that in the plasma of AD-patients various carotenoids and retinoids are at lower levels, while the ratio of lycopene isomers was also altered. The higher rate of lycopene and retinoic acid isomerisation products might be a consequence of AD or might result in an altered activation of nuclear hormone receptor signaling pathways and thus maybe partly be responsible for the AD-phenotype and additionally may represent a good plasma marker for AD.

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How to overcome the ATRA resistance with the 9aaTAD activation domains in retinoic acid receptors

10.1101/298646 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Martin Piskacek ◽

Marek Havelka ◽

Andrea Knight

Keyword(s):

Retinoic Acid ◽

Hormone Receptors ◽

Activation Function ◽

Receptor Activation ◽

Nuclear Hormone Receptor ◽

Nuclear Hormone Receptors ◽

Loss Of Function ◽

Activation Domains ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid

AbstractIn higher metazoa, the nuclear hormone receptors activate transcription trough their specific adaptors, nuclear hormone receptor cofactors NCoA, which are surprisingly absent in lower metazoa. In this study, we demonstrated that the 9aaTAD from NHR-49 receptor activates transcription as a small peptide. We showed, that the 9aaTAD domains are conserved in the human nuclear hormone receptors including HNF4, RARa, VDR and PPARg. The small 9aaTAD peptides derived from these nuclear hormone receptors also effectively activated transcription and that in absence of the NCoA adaptors. We identified adjacent inhibitory domains in the human HNF4 and RARa, which hindered their activation function.In acute promyelocytic leukaemia (PML-RARa), the receptor mutations often caused all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) resistance. The fact that almost the entire receptor is needed for ATRA mediated receptor activation, this activation pathway is highly susceptible for loss of function when mutated. Nevertheless in the most of the reported mutants, the activation domains 9aaTAD are still intact. The release of activation 9aaTAD from its dormancy by a new drug might be the sound strategy in combat the ATRA resistance in PML leukaemia.Graphical Abstract

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Repeated topical administration of all-trans-retinoic acid and plasma levels of retinoic acids in humans

Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology ◽

10.1016/s0190-9622(94)70051-6 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 30 (3) ◽

pp. 428-434 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Peter Buchan ◽

Christian Eckhoff ◽

Danièle Caron ◽

Heinz Nau ◽

Braham Shroot ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Retinoic Acid ◽

Plasma Levels ◽

Topical Administration ◽

Retinoic Acids ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid

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Chemokine Induction by All-Trans Retinoic Acid in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia - Triggering the Retinoic Acid Syndrome

Blood ◽

10.1182/blood.v112.11.2980.2980 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 112 (11) ◽

pp. 2980-2980

Author(s):

Maaike Luesink ◽

Jeroen Pennings ◽

Willemijn Wissink ◽

Peter Linssen ◽

Petra Muus ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Retinoic Acid ◽

Plasma Levels ◽

Promyelocytic Leukemia ◽

Inflammatory Cascade ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

Cc Chemokines ◽

Retinoic Acid Syndrome

Abstract The most important complication of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment in acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is the retinoic acid syndrome (RAS), a life-threatening hyper-inflammatory reaction with a distinct capillary leak syndrome and multi-organ failure. Once established, the syndrome has proven very difficult to manage. Early recognition in combination with prompt corticosteroid treatment significantly reduces the mortality rate of patients with this syndrome. Nonetheless, still 15% of the induction deaths in APL is caused by RAS. The pathogenic mechanism of the hyper-inflammatory cascade in RAS is not fully understood yet. Infiltration of differentiating APL cells in the lung is important in the development of RAS. In addition, differentiation of APL cells by ATRA is associated with increased expression and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines and adhesion molecules in vitro and it has been hypothesized that this is important for the triggering of the hyper-inflammatory cascade in RAS. We investigated the effect of ATRA on the expression and secretion of chemokines in APL cells in vitro and in vivo. Using microarray, quantitative PCR and ELISA we demonstrated significant induction (up to 16000-fold) of 8 CC-chemokines (CCLs) in the NB4 APL cell line after differentiation induction with ATRA in vitro. To demonstrate the significance of chemokine induction by ATRA in vivo, we measured plasma levels of CCLs in 3 APL patients, treated with a combination of ATRA, idarubicine and prednisone according to the AIDA-2000/P protocol. One of these patients developed an obvious retinoic acid syndrome. During therapy we observed increased plasma levels of 3 CCLs in all three patients. Induction of 5 other CCLs (CCL3, CCL4, CCL7, CCL8, CL11) was only observed during RAS, suggesting that upregulation of these 5 CC-chemokines is specific for RAS. To investigate whether the plasma levels of CC-chemokines are functionally relevant, we measured chemo-attraction of peripheral blood leukocytes towards plasma of an APL patient who developed RAS using a transwell system. Plasma from this patient during RAS showed significant more chemo-attraction than plasma from the same patient before treatment with ATRA, idarubicine and prednisone. Subsequently we investigated whether the therapeutic effect of dexamethasone in RAS can be ascribed to downregulation of chemokine expression in APL cells. Despite dexamethasone, the induction of chemokine expression in NB4 cells by ATRA sustained. We conclude that ATRA causes massive secretion of chemokines by APL cells, which might trigger the hyper-inflammatory cascade in RAS by continuous attraction of APL cells and other inflammatory cells towards tissues like the lung. Dexamethasone does not abrogate the production of CC-chemokines by APL cells, but rather seems to inhibit the hyper-inflammatory cascade at the level of the effector cells and target tissues like the lung. This might explain why dexamethasone is not able to sufficiently reverse a retinoic acid syndrome once it has been established. The application of neutralizing CC-chemokine receptor antibodies or other antagonists might be an alternative route to treat an established retinoic acid syndrome.

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Identification and characterization of a functional retinoic acid/thyroid hormone-response element upstream of the human insulin gene enhancer

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bj3090863 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 309 (3) ◽

pp. 863-870 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

A R Clark ◽

M E Wilson ◽

N J M London ◽

R F L James ◽

K Docherty

Keyword(s):

Retinoic Acid ◽

Thyroid Hormone ◽

Hormone Receptor ◽

Retinoic Acid Receptor ◽

Nuclear Hormone Receptor ◽

Insulin Gene ◽

Acid Receptor ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

Human Insulin Gene ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid

A deletion analysis of the human insulin gene extending to 2 kb upstream of the transcription start site provided evidence of regulatory sequences located upstream of the insulin-linked polymorphic region (ILPR). Within this ILPR-distal region is a sequence (Ink, for insulin kilobase upstream) which contains three potential nuclear hormone-receptor half-sites, closely matching the consensus sequence AGGTCA. These sequences are arranged as a palindromic element with zero spacing over-lapping a direct repeat with 2 bp spacing. The Ink sequence was used in electrophoretic mobility-shift assays within nuclear extracts from COS-7 cells overexpressing the vitamin D, thyroid hormone or retinoic acid receptors, or from an insulin-expressing hamster cell line, HIT-T15. These studies suggest that the insulin-expressing cell line contains thyroid hormone and retinoic acid receptors at least, and that these receptors are able to recognize the Ink sequence. Three copies of the Ink sequence were placed upstream of the thymidine kinase promoter and firefly luciferase reporter gene. In COS-7 cells expressing the appropriate nuclear hormone receptor, this construct was responsive to both thyroid hormone (18-fold) and all-trans-retinoic acid (31-fold). In HIT-T15 cells the same construct responded to all-trans-retinoic acid, but not to thyroid hormone. Within the context of a 2 kb insulin gene fragment, the Ink sequence was shown to be activated by retinoic acid and by the retinoic acid receptor, but acted as a negative element in the presence of both retinoic acid and the retinoic acid receptor. Mutagenesis studies demonstrated that the palindromic sequence was important for the retinoic acid response, and for binding of complexes containing retinoic acid receptor. In human islets of Langerhans, retinoic acid was shown to stimulate insulin mRNA levels. These results demonstrate that a functional nuclear hormone-receptor-response element is located upstream of the human ILPR. As retinoic acid and thyroid hormone are frequently involved in developmental regulatory processes, it is possible that this element may be important in the process of islet cell differentiation.

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9-cis-retinoic acid, a potent inducer of digit pattern duplications in the chick wing bud

Development ◽

10.1242/dev.118.3.957 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 118 (3) ◽

pp. 957-965 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

C. Thaller ◽

C. Hofmann ◽

G. Eichele

Keyword(s):

Retinoic Acid ◽

Hormone Receptors ◽

Quantitative Agreement ◽

Trans Form ◽

Potent Inducer ◽

Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

All Trans Retinoic Acid ◽

Wing Bud ◽

Cis Isomer

The effects of retinoids are mediated by two types of receptors, the retinoic acid receptors (RARs) and the retinoid-X-receptors (RXRs). The physiological ligand of the RARs is all-trans-retinoic acid whereas RXRs have high affinity for 9-cis-retinoic acid, a naturally occurring retinoid isomer. RXRs are broadly expressed in embryonic and adult tissues, and they are capable of forming homodimers as well as heterodimers with RARs and other nuclear hormone receptors. The role of 9-cis-retinoic acid in regulating the activity of RXR homodimers and RXR-containing heterodimers is poorly understood in vivo. To begin to explore the function of 9-cis-retinoic acid in morphogenesis, we have examined the activity of this isomer in the chick wing. Using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction analyses, we show that RXR gamma is expressed in stage 20 wing buds. Similar to all-trans-retinoic acid, the 9-cis-isomer induces pattern duplications when locally applied to chick wing buds, but the 9-cis isomer is about 25 times more potent than the all-trans form. Furthermore, applied all-trans-retinoic acid is converted to the 9-cis isomer in the wing bud. The ratio of 9-cis to all-trans-retinoic acid established in the tissue is approximately 1:25. This quantitative agreement between the degree of conversion and the 25-fold higher efficacy of the 9-cis isomer, raises the possibility that, at least in part, the effects of all-trans-retinoic acid on the wing pattern result from a conversion to the 9-cis isomer.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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