Abstract
The deiodinases activate or inactivate thyroid hormone, and their importance in thyroid hormone homeostasis has become increasingly clear with the availability of deiodinase-deficient animals. At the same time, heightened interest in the field has been generated following the discovery that the type 2 deiodinase can be an important component in both the Hedgehog signaling pathway and the G protein-coupled bile acid receptor 1-mediated (GPBAR1-mediated) signaling cascade. The discovery of these new roles for the deiodinases indicates that tissue-specific deiodination plays a much broader role than once thought, extending into the realms of developmental biology and metabolism.