title: Cannabinoid type-1 receptor gene polymorphisms are associated with central obesity in a Southern Brazilian population.
abstract: The CB1 cannabinoid receptor and its endogenous ligands, the endocannabinoids, are involved in energy balance control, stimulating appetite and increasing body weight in wasting syndromes. Different studies have investigated the relationship between polymorphisms of the cannabinoid receptor 1 (CNR1) gene and obesity with conflicting results. In the present study, we investigated the 1359G/A (rs1049353), 3813A/G (rs12720071) and 4895A/G (rs806368) polymorphisms in the CNR1 gene in a Brazilian population of European descent. To verify the association between these variants and obesity-related traits in this population, 756 individuals were genotyped by PCR-RFLP methods. The 4895G allele was associated with waist to hip ratio (WHR) (P = 0.014; P = 0.042 after Bonferroni correction). An additive effect with the GAA haplotype was associated with WHR (P = 0.028), although this statistical significance disappeared after Bonferroni correction (P = 0.084). No significant association was observed between the genotypes of the 1359G/A and 3813A/G polymorphisms and any of the quantitative variables investigated. Our findings suggest that CNR1 gene polymorphism is associated with central obesity in this Brazilian population of European ancestry.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Caixa Postal 15053, 91501-970 Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
authors.forename: Janaína P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Jaeger
authors.forename: Vanessa S
authors.initials: VS
authors.lastname: Mattevi
authors.forename: Sidia M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Callegari-Jacques
authors.forename: Mara H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Hutz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001938:Brazil; D063385:Cannabinoid Receptor Modulators / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000208:ethnology / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D043884:Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB1 / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D063385:Cannabinoid Receptor Modulators; D043884:Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB1