What is it about?
Researchers have discovered that amino acid scarcity—whether caused by diet or chemotherapy—impairs the liver’s ability to release vitamin A into the bloodstream. Using dietary and pharmacological models, the team found that when amino acids are scarce, the liver suppresses secretion of key proteins needed for vitamin A transport, even though vitamin A stores remain adequate.
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Why is it important?
Vitamin A, which can be obtained through foods or taken as a supplement, including meat and dairy products as well as vegetables and fruits, is an essential nutrient for humans. Reduced availability of vitamin A in the body impairs general health, including vision, growth and cell division. This research reveals a new pathway controlling vitamin A availability in the body, reshaping our understanding of vitamin A biology for human health. This work may have important implications for patients who receive asparaginase chemotherapy to treat leukemia, where vitamin A delivery to critical organs like the pancreas may be compromised and result in functional impairments. Importantly, variability in protein quality and quantity may also occur in the frail and elderly, patients with malabsorption such as celiac disease or pancreatic insufficiency, and individuals on restrictive diets or have low protein intake consequential to weight loss medications or surgery. In these instances, amino acid shortage may lead to inadequate vitamin A distribution in the body and silently erode the health status of the individual.
Perspectives
“Our findings challenge the long-held belief that vitamin A distribution from the liver to the rest of the body is regulated solely by vitamin A status,” said Dr. Loredana Quadro. “We now better understand that other nutrients such as amino acids can control this process,” added Dr. Tracy Anthony. “This work would not have been possible without the dedication and perseverance of our lab teams, especially co-first authors Chintan Bhavsar and Youn-Kyoung Kim,” agreed Drs. Quadro and Anthony.
Tracy Anthony
Rutgers University New Brunswick
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Amino acid insufficiency impairs hepatic vitamin A mobilization in mice, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, November 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2501834122.
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