title: Screening for melanocortin-4 receptor mutations in a cohort of Belgian morbidly obese adults and children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether pathogenic melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) mutations are a common cause of obesity in Belgium.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional mutation analysis.
  
  
  METHODS
  In total, 95 morbidly obese adults (mean age 44.02+/-11.35 years; mean BMI 47.87+/-4.17 kg/m2 and 123 obese children and adolescents were screened for mutations in MC4R (mean age 16.56+/-2.58 years; BMI>95th percentile for age and sex; mean % overweight 170.86 +/- 23.63).
  
  
  METHODS
  A series of anthropometric (e.g. weight, height, waist, hip), biochemical and clinical measurements were performed on all subjects. The entire coding region of MC4R was screened using DHPLC, a highly sensitive and specific method for mutation analysis. Direct sequencing was performed when the chromatogram deviated from the WT pattern.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mutation screening of a cohort of Belgian obese adults and children did not detect any pathogenic mutations as only the previously described polymorphisms Val103Ile, Thr112Met and Ile251Leu were detected.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pathogenic mutations in MC4R are not a common cause of obesity in a Belgian population of obese adults, children and adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Genetics, University and University Hospital Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Beckers
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mertens
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peeters
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Van Gaal
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Van Hul
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001530:Belgium; D002648:Child; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005820:Genetic Testing; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D044105:Receptor, Melanocortin, Type 4 / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D044105:Receptor, Melanocortin, Type 4