Peraxisome prolifrator-activated receptors (PPARs) are a group of nuclear receptors comprising three isoforms termed alpha, beta/delta and gamma. PPARs can modulate metabolic processes especially fatty acid (FA) metabolisms via exerting transcriptional control on activating genes involved in fuel utilization. Thus, they can exert positive role in controlling chronic diseases such as diabetes. A...

BACKGROUND As peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) is frequently expressed in colon, its genetic polymorphism may play a role in the etiology of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aims of the present study were to determine the distribution of PPAR-gamma polymorphisms Pro12Ala and C161T and to explore the association between the PPAR-gamma genotypes and phenotypes of...

BACKGROUND While glucocorticoids are currently the most effective therapy for asthma, associated side effects limit enthusiasm for their use. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma) activators include the synthetic thiazolidinediones (TZDs) which exhibit anti-inflammatory effects that suggest usefulness in diseases such as asthma. How the ability of TZDs to modulate the as...

Lysophospholipid (LPL) has long been recognized as a membrane phospholipid metabolite. Recently, however, the LPL has emerged as a candidate for diagnostic and pharmacological interest. LPLs include lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), alkyl glycerol phosphate (AGP), cyclic phosphatidic acid (cPA), and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P). These biologically active lipid mediators serve to promote a variety o...

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) were discovered over a decade ago, and were classified as orphan members of the nuclear receptor superfamily. To date, three PPAR subtypes have been discovered and characterized (PPAR $\alpha$, $\beta/\delta$, $\gamma$ ). Different PPAR subtypes have been shown to play crucial roles in important diseases and conditions such as obesity, diabete...

The molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are still not fully understood. In AD, Wnt/beta-catenin signaling has been shown to be downregulated while the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma (mARN and protein) is upregulated. Certain neurodegenerative diseases share the same Wnt/beta-catenin/PPAR gamma profile, such as bipolar disorder...

In Western culture, excess visceral fat accumulation or obesity has reached epidemic proportions, resulting in metabolic syndrome. However, more than 10 years of research has shown that adipocytes also function as endocrine cells that release various bioactive substances, so called "adipocytokines or adipokines", that play a major role in the regulation of food intake, insulin sensitivity, ener...

INTRODUCTION Progressive fibrosis in systemic sclerosis (SSc) is linked to aberrant transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) signaling. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-gamma) blocks fibrogenic TGF-beta responses in vitro and in vivo. Reduced expression and function of PPAR-gamma in patients with SSc may contribute to progression of fibrosis. Here we evaluated the levels...

Quantitative real-time RT-PCR study was conducted to reveal the effects of normal (5 mmol/l) and high (30 mmol/l) glucose without or with oleate (0.3 mmol/l) on mRNA levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor- (PPAR-)alpha, -gamma1, -gamma2, and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator- (PGC-)1alpha and -1beta in commercial human hepatoma-derived HepG2 cells mainta...

The opposite interplay between peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR gamma) and Wnt/beta-catenin signaling has led to the categorization of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) as either NDs in which PPAR gamma is downregulated while the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin pathway is upregulated [amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, multiple sclero...