MINIREVIEW
PPAR-Alpha and Insulin
Sensitivity
M.M. HALUZÍK1, 2, M. HALUZÍK1
1Third Department of Medicine, First Faculty of
Medicine, Charles University and University Hospital, Prague and
2Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science,
University of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
Received December 20, 2004
Accepted May 4, 2005
On-line available May 24, 2005
Summary
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) belong to the
nuclear receptor superfamily of ligand-activated transcription
factors. PPAR-α, first of its three subtypes (α, β,
γ) has traditionally been considered an important
regulator of lipid metabolism while its role in the regulation
of insulin sensitivity has not been recognized until recently.
Here we summarize the experimental and clinical studies focusing
on the role of PPAR-α in the regulation of insulin sensitivity.
In most of the experimental studies the activation of PPAR-α in
rodents leads to improvement of insulin sensitivity by multiple
mechanisms including improvement of insulin signaling due to a
decrease of ectopic lipids in non-adipose tissues and decrease
of circulating fatty acids and triglycerides. In contrast, the
effect of PPAR-α agonist in humans is much less pronounced
probably due to a lower expression of PPAR-α relative to rodents
and possibly other mechanisms. Further clinical studies using
more potent PPAR-α agonists on a larger population need to be
performed to evaluate the possible role of PPAR-α in the
regulation of insulin sensitivity in humans.
Key words
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-alpha • Insulin
sensitivity • Obesity• Adipose tissue
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