The nuclear receptor SF-1 (steroidogenic factor-1) is no longer an orphan

factor-1, also termed adrenal 4-binding protein or Ad4BP) is a major regulator of the development and function of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal and –gonadal axes. It was initially discovered as a key transcription factor regulating the cytochrome P450 steroid hydroxylases in the gonads and the adrenal cortex (1, 2). The promoter of the genes regulated by SF-1 contains an AGGTCA-derived motif that binds SF-1. This nuclear receptor also regulates the expression of the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein, the adrenocortico-trophin receptor, and, in the pituitary, the a-subunit of glycoproteins (3). Interestingly, SF-1 seems to play a role in cAMP regulation of transcription in the adrenal cortex. In keeping with a major role for this nuclear recepto