Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors are promising drugs for diseases such as cancer. Using mouse and human cell lines, Nebbioso and colleagues have revealed the activity spectrum of Class II HDACs which regulate differentiation. They showed that the novel inhibitor MC1568 selectively inhibits class-II HDACs in murine F9 cells but not in human NB4 cells. This inhibition affected retinoic acid signalling, showing tissue-specific expression of HDACs in this signalling pathway. They also used transgenic mouse to show that MC1568 specifically impairs the signalling pathway of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (a nuclear receptor which regulates transcription), decreasing adipogenesis mostly in heart and adipose tissues. Nebbioso et al. (2010) Journal of Molecular Endocrinology 45, 219-228.

Read the full article at: DOI: 10.1677/JME-10-0043