Thus, synthetic retinoids that were able to activate transcription by RARA and PML-RARA, but not their degradation, mediated granulocytic differentiation of APL blasts, but conferred a much smaller survival benefit than atRA in a mouse model of APL [54] (with the drawback that atRA and the synthetic retinoids were administered via different routes). This evidence concerns the gene RARA and acute promyelocytic leukemia.