{"entity":{"id":"rxr","kind":"target","name":"Retinoid X receptor (RXR)","aka":[],"tldr":"The retinoid X receptor is a switch inside cells that vitamin A-like molecules turn on to change which genes are active; bexarotene uses it to make lymphoma cells in the skin mature and die.","summary":"RXR alpha, beta and gamma are nuclear receptors that form heterodimers with retinoic acid receptors, the vitamin D receptor, thyroid hormone receptor, PPARs and LXR, so a single RXR ligand can alter several transcriptional programmes at once. Bexarotene, a selective RXR agonist (rexinoid), is approved for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma; its metabolic side effects (central hypothyroidism, hypertriglyceridaemia) follow directly from RXR partner activation. The related retinoic acid receptor is the target of all-trans retinoic acid in acute promyelocytic leukaemia.","asOf":"2026-09-10","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retinoid_X_receptor","links":[{"label":"NCBI Gene RXRA","url":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/6256"}],"tags":["nuclear-receptor"],"related":[],"cancers":[],"sections":[],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":["acitretin","bexarotene","isotretinoin"],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":["aml-signalling","sclc-signalling"],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":["Prevalence not applicable: RXR alpha, beta and gamma are broadly expressed nuclear receptors, bexarotene is not selected on RXR expression, and no cancer is linked to this target, so no expression rate by cancer is recorded."],"symbol":"RXRA, RXRB, RXRG","role":[],"sources":[],"specificity":"broadly-expressed","distribution":"few-types","specificityNote":"Broadly expressed or essential: HPA finds the RNA at low tissue specificity; the 3 medicines aimed at it (Acitretin, Bexarotene, Isotretinoin) act on the wild-type protein, so normal tissue is exposed and the therapeutic window comes from the tumour's faster division or its dependence on the protein. HPA RXRA: RNA low tissue specificity; blood lineage group enriched (granulocytes 20 nTPM, monocytes 13 nTPM); high antibody staining in 32 normal tissues; highest cancer staining lung cancer (12 of 12 high). HPA RXRB: RNA low tissue specificity; high antibody staining in 32 normal tissues; highest cancer staining breast cancer (11 of 11 high). HPA RXRG: RNA tissue enhanced (pituitary gland 30 nTPM, retina 23 nTPM, skeletal muscle 47 nTPM); no normal tissue stained high; highest cancer staining carcinoid (1 of 4 high). Distribution: no corpus cancer carries a prevalence row, threshold or catalogue link for it; Open Targets associates it with 2 specific cancer types at or above 0.5 (primary cutaneous T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, urinary bladder cancer). (Rule 7 of scripts/fetch-target-specificity.ts.)","specificitySources":[{"label":"Human Protein Atlas RXRA tissue","url":"https://www.proteinatlas.org/ENSG00000186350-RXRA/tissue","note":"RNA tissue and blood lineage specificity, normal tissue antibody staining (version 25.1, CC BY-SA 3.0)"},{"label":"Human Protein Atlas RXRB tissue","url":"https://www.proteinatlas.org/ENSG00000204231-RXRB/tissue","note":"RNA tissue and blood lineage specificity, normal tissue antibody staining (version 25.1, CC BY-SA 3.0)"},{"label":"Human Protein Atlas RXRG tissue","url":"https://www.proteinatlas.org/ENSG00000143171-RXRG/tissue","note":"RNA tissue and blood lineage specificity, normal tissue antibody staining (version 25.1, CC BY-SA 3.0)"},{"label":"Open Targets ENSG00000186350 associations","url":"https://platform.opentargets.org/target/ENSG00000186350/associations","note":"cancer associations at or above 0.5 (CC0)"},{"label":"Open Targets ENSG00000204231 associations","url":"https://platform.opentargets.org/target/ENSG00000204231/associations","note":"cancer associations at or above 0.5 (CC0)"}],"biology":"Ligand binding recruits co-activators and drives differentiation and apoptosis genes in malignant T cells; RXR also modulates PPAR-gamma-dependent lipid metabolism.","whereFound":["Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (bexarotene)"],"targetClass":"nuclear-receptor","prevalence":[{"cancerId":"metastatic-cancer","pct":"all","measure":"Signalling protein present in most cells (retinoid X receptor); bexarotene acts on the pathway rather than on a mutation that selects patients, so no prevalence applies."}]},"route":"/targets/rxr/","neighbours":{"drug":[{"id":"acitretin","kind":"drug","name":"Acitretin","route":"/drugs/acitretin/"},{"id":"bexarotene","kind":"drug","name":"Bexarotene","route":"/drugs/bexarotene/"},{"id":"isotretinoin","kind":"drug","name":"Isotretinoin","route":"/drugs/isotretinoin/"}],"pathway":[{"id":"aml-signalling","kind":"pathway","name":"Acute myeloid leukaemia (KEGG map)","route":"/pathways/aml-signalling/"},{"id":"sclc-signalling","kind":"pathway","name":"Small cell lung cancer (KEGG map)","route":"/pathways/sclc-signalling/"}]}}