Coenzyme A esters of all-trans- and 13-cis-retinoic acid were synthesized for use in studying vitamin A metabolism. The esters were obtained by two different synthetic methods starting from retinoic acids, which were converted to activated succinimidyl esters or anhydrides. These in turn were coupled with coenzyme A to form their respective thioesters. The retinoyl coenzyme A esters were purified by reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography.
