The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases

Sajovic, Jana; Meglič, Andrej; Glavač, Damjan; Markelj, Špela; Hawlina, Marko; Fakin, Ana

doi:10.3390/ijms23031014

Open AccessReview

The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases

by

Jana Sajovic

¹

,

Andrej Meglič

¹,

Damjan Glavač

²

,

Špela Markelj

¹,

Marko Hawlina

¹ and

Ana Fakin

^1,*

¹

Eye Hospital, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Grablovičeva 46, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

²

Department of Molecular Genetics, Institute of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Vrazov trg 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23(3), 1014; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031014

Submission received: 19 December 2021 / Revised: 12 January 2022 / Accepted: 13 January 2022 / Published: 18 January 2022

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Research on Stress Response and Ocular Homeostasis 2.0)

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Abstract

Vitamin A is an essential fat-soluble vitamin that occurs in various chemical forms. It is essential for several physiological processes. Either hyper- or hypovitaminosis can be harmful. One of the most important vitamin A functions is its involvement in visual phototransduction, where it serves as the crucial part of photopigment, the first molecule in the process of transforming photons of light into electrical signals. In this process, large quantities of vitamin A in the form of 11-cis-retinal are being isomerized to all-trans-retinal and then quickly recycled back to 11-cis-retinal. Complex machinery of transporters and enzymes is involved in this process (i.e., the visual cycle). Any fault in the machinery may not only reduce the efficiency of visual detection but also cause the accumulation of toxic chemicals in the retina. This review provides a comprehensive overview of diseases that are directly or indirectly connected with vitamin A pathways in the retina. It includes the pathophysiological background and clinical presentation of each disease and summarizes the already existing therapeutic and prospective interventions.

Keywords: vitamin A; visual cycle; retinal diseases; ABCA4; RHO; RDH5; RDH12; treatment

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MDPI and ACS Style

Sajovic, J.; Meglič, A.; Glavač, D.; Markelj, Š.; Hawlina, M.; Fakin, A. The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2022, 23, 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031014

AMA Style

Sajovic J, Meglič A, Glavač D, Markelj Š, Hawlina M, Fakin A. The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2022; 23(3):1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031014

Chicago/Turabian Style

Sajovic, Jana, Andrej Meglič, Damjan Glavač, Špela Markelj, Marko Hawlina, and Ana Fakin. 2022. "The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 23, no. 3: 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031014

APA Style

Sajovic, J., Meglič, A., Glavač, D., Markelj, Š., Hawlina, M., & Fakin, A. (2022). The Role of Vitamin A in Retinal Diseases. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 23(3), 1014. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms23031014

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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