Steroid hormone receptors are ligand-dependent transcription factors that control a variety of essential physiologic and developmental processes in humans. The functional activity of a steroid receptor is regulated not only by hormones but also by an array of regulatory proteins such as coactivators, corepressors, and chromatin modifiers. Contrary to an earlier notion that corepressors and coactivators exist in separate complexes, these molecules, which have apparently opposite functions, are increasingly being found in the same complex, which allows for efficient transcriptional control mechanisms. These control mechanisms are in turn regulated by an array of post-translational modifications under the influence of upstream and local signaling networks. Because the outcome of steroidal hormone receptor transcriptional complexes is measured in terms of the expression of target genes, any dysregulation of coregulator complexes perturbs normal homeostasis and could contribute to the development and maintenance of malignant phenotypes. Increasing evidence implicating steroid hormone receptors and their coregulators in various pathophysiologic conditions has elicited interest in their structure and biology. Further advances in this field of study should open up a unique window for novel targeted therapies for diseases such as cancer. Here we briefly review the clinical relevance of corepressors, with a particular focus on their role in the development of cancerous phenotypes.
Steroid hormone receptors (also known as nuclear receptors)are ligand-dependent transcription factors that control a variety of essential physiologic and developmental processes in humans (1 -3). Widely studied steroid hormone receptors include estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors, androgen receptors, and glucocorticoid receptors. The nuclear receptors primarily regulate the initiation of transcription by directly binding to specific DNA sequences in the regulatory region of target genes called hormone response elements and recruiting diverse ancillary factors characterized as coregulators along with the basal transcriptional machinery (4). For transcription factors to access DNA in the chromatin, the packaged chromatin structure needs to be partially unwound. The ligand-activated nuclear receptors are thought to mediate their transactivation functions by facilitating this regional loosening of the chromatin in the following manner. Ligand binding results in the dismissal of histone deacetylase -containing corepressor complexes and the concomitant recruitment of coactivator complexes. The coactivator complexes use their histone acetyltransferase activities to remodel the nucleosomal structures, thus opening up the chromatin and helping recruit the basal transcriptional machinery. In general, coregulators do not bind to DNA but are recruited to the target promoters via protein-protein interactions with the sequence-specific and context-dependent transcription factors (5). The relaxation and condensation of chromatin is tightly cont...