Retinoid X receptors (RXRs) and retinoic acid receptors (RARs) are nuclear receptors that mediate the biological effects of retinoids by their involvement in retinoic acid-mediated gene activation. These receptors function as transcription factors by binding as homodimers or heterodimers to specific sequences in the promoters of target genes. The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the steroid and thyroid hormone receptor superfamily of transcriptional regulators. Alternative splicing of this gene results in multiple transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, May 2014].