Meeting report: nuclear receptors: transcription factors and drug targets connecting basic research with translational medicine

Abstract

The biannual European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) conference on nuclear receptors was organized by Beatrice Desvergne and Laszlo Nagy and took place in Cavtat near Dubrovnik on the Adriatic coast of Croatia September 25-29, 2009. The meeting brought together researchers from all over the world covering a wide spectrum from fundamental mechanistic studies to metabolism, clinical studies, and drug development. In this report, we summarize the recent and exciting findings presented by the speakers at the meeting.

Fig. 1.

Comparison of the structures of PPARγ:RXRα:PPRE as determined in solution by small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) (left) or by x-ray crystallography (PDB code 3DZY; right). Color code: PPAR in light gray, RXR in dark gray, and the PPRE in red. While the PPARγ:RXRα heterodimer adopts an extended conformation in solution, a more compact structure is observed in the crystal (Courtesy of N. Rochel and D. Moras).

Fig. 2.

The authors: Jan Tuckermann, Susanne Mandrup, and William Bourguet.

Fig. 3.

The main organizers of the meeting: Laszlo Nagy and Beatrice Desvergne.