Review paper
Peroxisome proliferator activated receptors γ (PPAR-g) in human physiology and pathology

As the global prevalence of obesity and diabetes increases, attention has been focused on revealing the exact molecular mechanisms controlling these and coexisting metabolic disturbances. Peroxisome proliferator activated receptors γ – PPAR-g – are critically important in adipose tissue function. They belong to the superfamily of ligand inducible transcription factors. Peroxisome proliferator activated receptors γ directly regulate a large number of target genes that mediate gluconeogenesis, triglicerides uptake and storage, lipolysis and adipocytokines synthesis. Their pharmacological activation decreases insulin resistance. Numerous genetic variants of PPAR-g gene have been indentified, of which Pro12 Ala polymorphism is the most prevalent. It has been shown that carriers of the proline allele are at high risk of type 2 diabetes. Knowing the biology of these receptors might therefore contribute to understand underlying patomechanisms and potential ways of treatment as far as epidemiologically relevant diseases are concerned.