How the adult lung uses vitamin A
Vitamin A metabolism in the adult lung
Researchers are looking at whether the adult lung gets and stores vitamin A from blood lipoproteins and how that affects lung damage and repair in acute lung injury.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rutgers, the State Univ of N.j. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Piscataway, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11250057 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project studies how vitamin A is taken up, stored, and moved between cells in the adult lung using cell-level gene profiling and animal models. Researchers found that lung cells such as lipofibroblasts, endothelial cells, and epithelial cells store vitamin A as retinyl esters and express genes for uptake from circulating lipoproteins. Mouse experiments show that lack of these local lung vitamin A stores leads to worse acute lung injury, loss of alveolar barrier integrity, and impaired surfactant production. The team will use single-cell RNA sequencing and genetic models to trace lipoprotein-derived vitamin A handling and its effects on lung repair.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with or at high risk for acute lung injury or ARDS would be the patient group most likely to benefit from future therapies arising from this work, although this grant mainly uses mouse and tissue studies rather than enrolling patients.
Not a fit: People without lung injury, children, and those with conditions unrelated to vitamin A metabolism are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to ways to protect the lung barrier or restore surfactant by preserving or restoring local vitamin A delivery and storage after acute lung injury.
How similar studies have performed: Previous research has linked vitamin A to lung health and repair, but the proposed lipoprotein-based delivery pathway is a novel concept with limited prior testing in humans.
Where this research is happening
Piscataway, United States
- Rutgers, the State Univ of N.j. — Piscataway, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Shmarakov, Igor — Rutgers, the State Univ of N.j.
- Study coordinator: Shmarakov, Igor
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.