In vitro activity: GW 4064 is a full agonist with EC50 values of 80 and 90 nM, respectively, in CV-1 cells transfected with mouse and human FXR expression vectors and an established reporter gene. There is no activity of GW 4064 on other nuclear receptors, including the retinoic acid receptor, at concentrations up to 1 μM. Thus, GW 4064 is a potent and selective nonsteroidal FXR agonist.

Kinase Assay: GW 4064 is a potent FXR agonist with EC50 of 65 nM.

Cell Assay: Mouse liver cells (BNL CL.2) are maintained in a humidified incubator under 5% CO2 at 37°C in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium (DMEM) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS) and 1% Penicillin/Streptomycin. When cells are divided into six-well plates and reach ~90% confluence, sub-confluent cells are washed three times with phosphate buffered saline (PBS) and replaced with serum-free DMEM supplemented with 1% fatty acid-free BSA. Oleic acid (final concentration 500 μM) and GW4064 at various concentrations are added and incubated for 24 h. Cells are then fixed with 4% formaldehyde for Oil Red O staining or harvested for protein and western blot analysis.