Association between the FTO rs9939609 polymorphism and the metabolic syndrome in a non-Caucasian multi-ethnic sample.
BACKGROUND
The rs9939609 T>A single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the FTO gene has previously been found to be associated with obesity in European Caucasian samples. The objective of this study is to examine whether this association extends to metabolic syndrome (MetS) and applies in non-Caucasian samples.


METHODS
The FTO rs9939609 SNP was genotyped in 2121 subjects from four different non-Caucasian geographical ancestries. Subjects were classified for the presence or absence of MetS according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel (NCEP ATP) III definitions.


RESULTS
Carriers of > or = 1 copy of the rs9939609 A allele were significantly more likely to have IDF-defined MetS (35.8%) than non-carriers (31.2%), corresponding to a carrier odds ratio (OR) of 1.23 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01 to 1.50), with a similar trend for the NCEP ATP III-defined MetS. Subgroup analysis showed that the association was particularly strong in men. The association was related to a higher proportion of rs9939609 A allele carriers meeting the waist circumference criterion; a higher proportion also met the HDL cholesterol criterion compared with wild-type homozygotes.


CONCLUSIONS
Thus, the FTO rs9939609 SNP was associated with an increased risk for MetS in this multi-ethnic sample, confirming that the association extends to non-Caucasian population samples.
Al-Attar
Salam A
SA
Vascular Biology Research Group, Robarts Research Institute, London, Ontario, Canada. salattar@robarts.ca
Pollex
Rebecca L
RL
Ban
Matthew R
MR
Young
T Kue
TK
Bjerregaard
Peter
P
Anand
Sonia S
SS
Yusuf
Salim
S
Zinman
Bernard
B
Harris
Stewart B
SB
Hanley
Anthony Jg
AJ
Connelly
Philip W
PW
Huff
Murray W
MW
Hegele
Robert A
RA
D000328:Adult; D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics*; D049628:Body Size / Q000235:genetics; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D007198:Indians, North American / Q000235:genetics*; D004930:Inuit / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000235:genetics*; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010641:Phenotype; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors
D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D011506:Proteins; D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; C526492:FTO protein, human