How genomic studies have improved our understanding of the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation by NR5A nuclear receptors

•SF-1 and LRH-1 are nuclear receptors that belong to the NR5A subclass.•They bind as monomers to nuclear receptor half-sites.•They have a critical role in development, physiology and are also implicated in endocrine cancers.•Recent genome-wide studies have shed light on the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation by NR5A nuclear receptors.

SF-1 and LRH-1 are transcription factors that belong to the NR5A family of nuclear receptors that both have an essential role during development. Recent studies at the genome-wide scale have enabled the characterization of the cistrome and transcriptome regulated by SF-1 and LRH-1 in different cell lines and tissues. Those studies have allowed us to make a significant leap forward in our understanding of the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation of NR5A nuclear receptors in stem cells and cancer.