Drug Insight: mechanisms of action and therapeutic applications for agonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are important regulators of energy homeostasis and inflammation. They modulate cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome. This Review describes these mechanisms, and the drugs that modulate PPARs and are in current clinical use, as well as potential new drug-development strategies targeting PPARs.