RA, acting through RAR and Smad3, blocks C/EBPβ and C/EBPα activity, which subsequently inhibits PPARγ expression in vitro. It is suggestive that RA also regulates other transcription factors, i.e. SREBP1c, STAT5, KLF5 and EBF1 in various tissues. Endogenous RA is produced from retinaldehyde by the cytosolic Aldh1 family of enzymes. Our studies showed that autocrine production of RA controls 70% of ZFP423 expression in visceral fat, which in turn induces PPARγ expression.