title: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors: a family of lipid-activated transcription factors.
abstract: Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are a family of nuclear transcription factors that belong to the steroid receptor superfamily. This family of PPARs includes PPARalpha, PPARdelta, PPARgamma1, and PPARgamma2. These PPARs are related to the T3 and vitamin D(3) receptors and bind to a hexameric direct repeat as a heterodimeric complex with retinoid receptor Xalpha. PPARs regulate the expression of a wide array of genes that encode proteins involved in lipid metabolism, energy balance, eicosanoid signaling, cell differentiation, and tumorigenesis. A unique feature of these steroid-like receptors is that the physiologic ligands for PPARs appear to be fatty acids from the n-6 and n-3 families of fatty acids and their respective eicosanoid products. This review describes the characteristics, regulation, and gene targets for PPARs and relates their effects on gene expression to physiologic outcomes that affect lipid and glucose metabolism, thermogenesis, atherosclerosis, and cell differentiation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nutritional Sciences and the Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, 78712, USA. stevedclarke@mail.utexas.edu
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Clarke
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Thuillier
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Baillie
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sha
mesh_terms: D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D020025:Peroxisome Proliferators / Q000378:metabolism*; D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D018168:Receptors, Retinoic Acid / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D011987:Receptors, Steroid / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D011988:Receptors, Thyroid Hormone / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D008024:Ligands; D020025:Peroxisome Proliferators; D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol; D018168:Receptors, Retinoic Acid; D011987:Receptors, Steroid; D011988:Receptors, Thyroid Hormone; D014157:Transcription Factors