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The specialized functions of differentiated cell types in complex, multi-cellular organisms are the result of specific expression of subsets of genes present in the genome. The processes that establish and maintain these patterns of expression begin in the earliest developmental stages. We are interested in the combinatorial diversity of the molecular interactions that control cell-specific gene expression. The members of the family of steroid hormone receptors have long been an important model for the combinations of protein-protein and protein-DNA interactions underlying control of gene expression in specific cell types. These receptors behave as ligand-induced activators and repressors of gene transcription, which have varied, important functions in development, metabolism, and reproduction throughout a wide range of evolutionarily-diverse species. The tools for monitoring changes in gene expression in response to steroid hormones, as well as in response to other external stimuli, can also be used to characterize pathological changes in cells and tissues; and thus become powerful diagnostic tools.