RLBP1 encodes cellular retinaldehyde binding protein (CRALBP), a soluble retinoid carrier essential for visual function in both rod and cone photoreceptors. CRALBP is predominantly expressed in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) but also in Müller cells, where it functions as a chaperone for 11-cis-retinoids in the visual cycle 1. The protein participates in regenerating active 11-cis-retinol and 11-cis-retinaldehyde from inactive 11-trans products produced during the rhodopsin photocycle, enabling the cycling of retinoids between photoreceptor and RPE cells 2. Loss of RPE-expressed RLBP1 selectively impairs vision under low-light conditions, recapitulating the night blindness presentation in patients 1. Biallelic RLBP1 mutations cause three inherited retinal dystrophy subtypes: Bothnia dystrophy, retinitis punctata albescens, and Newfoundland rod-cone dystrophy 3. Progressive macular atrophy characterizes typical severe cases, though hypomorphic variants may cause milder phenotypes 4. Gene therapy using AAV8-RLBP1 subretinal delivery demonstrated preliminary safety and efficacy in patients, significantly improving dark adaptation kinetics and resolving disease-related retinal deposits 5. RLBP1 variants have also been identified in age-related macular degeneration through genome-wide transcriptome analysis 6.