PPARs and adipocyte function

For long viewed as passive lipid storage depots, adipocytes are now recognised as key players in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance and metabolic disease. In parallel, the last two decades of research have seen the emergence of transcription factors of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) family as central regulators of lipid and glucose homeostasis and molecular targets for drugs to treat hyper-lipidaemia and type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this review we discuss the characteristics of PPARs and the role of the different isotypes in adipocyte biology.