The protein encoded by this gene is a membrane protein involved in the metabolism of retinol. The encoded protein acts as a receptor for retinol/retinol binding protein complexes. This protein removes the retinol from the complex and transports it across the cell membrane. Defects in this gene are a cause of syndromic microphthalmia type 9 (MCOPS9). Several transcript variants encoding a few different isoforms have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Dec 2008]
Forensic Context
A study in mice identified STRA6 as a transcript with highly specific enhanced expression in the nucleus accumbens shell, where it was used as a seed for a topographic transcriptomic analysis to identify novel targets for cocaine use disorder [Crofton et al. DOI:10.1016/J.Neuropharm.2020.108398].