Pharmacology
Although used clinically since the 1930s, if not earlier, the mechanism of action of fibrates remained unelucidated until, in the 1990s, it was discovered that fibrates activate PPAR (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors), especially PPARĪ±. The PPARs are a class of intracellular receptors that modulate carbohydrate and fat metabolism and adipose tissue differentiation.
Activating PPARs induces the transcription of a number of genes that facilitate lipid metabolism.
Fibrates are structurally and pharmacologically related to the thiazolidinediones, a novel class of anti-diabetic drugs that also act on PPARs (more specifically PPARĪ³)
Fibrates are a substrate of (metabolized by) CYP3A4.
Read more about this topic: Fibrate