Thyroid hormone excess has potentially useful effects, including lowering of serum cholesterol and reduction of body fat. However, the therapeutic application of this hormone has so far been hampered by deleterious effects on the heart, muscle and bone. This article reviews recent progress in the development of selective thyroid hormone mimetics that seem to lack the adverse actions associated with thyroid hormone itself, making them a promising new strategy for the treatment of atherosclerosis, obesity and type 2 diabetes.
