The association between common genetic variation in the FTO gene and metabolic syndrome in Han Chinese.
BACKGROUND
Genome-wide association studies for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) identified FTO gene as a locus conferring increased risk for common obesity in many populations with European ancestry. However, the involvement of FTO gene in obesity or T2DM related metabolic traits has not been consistently established in Chinese populations. The objective of this study was to investigate the association of FTO genetic polymorphisms with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Han Chinese.


METHODS
We tested 41 FTO single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for association between FTO and MetS-related traits. There were a total of 236 unrelated subjects (108 cases and 128 controls), grouped according to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria.


RESULTS
Of the 41 SNPs examined, only SNP rs8047395 exhibited statistical significance (P = 0.026) under a recessive model, after Bonferroni adjustment for multiple testing (OR 1.64, 95%CI 1.11-2.42; P = 0.014). The common distributions of this polymorphism among Chinese--with a minor allele frequency (MAF) of 36% in the control group versus 48% in the MetS group--greatly improved our test power in a relatively small sample size for an association study. Previously identified obesity- (or T2DM-) associated FTO SNPs were less common in Han Chinese and were not associated with MetS in this study. No significant associations were found between our FTO SNPs and any endophenotypes of MetS.


CONCLUSIONS
A more common risk-conferring variant of FTO for MetS was identified in Han Chinese. Our study substantiated that genetic variations in FTO locus are involved in the pathogenesis of MetS.
Wang
Tong
T
Key Laboratory of Endocrinology, Ministry of Health, Department of Endocrinology, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100730, China.
Huang
Yi
Y
Xiao
Xin-Hua
XH
Wang
Duen-Mei
DM
Diao
Cheng-Ming
CM
Zhang
Feng
F
Xu
Ling-Ling
LL
Zhang
Yong-Biao
YB
Li
Wen-Hui
WH
Zhang
Li-Li
LL
Zhang
Yun
Y
Sun
Xiao-Fang
XF
Zhang
Qian
Q
D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; D044466:Asian People; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000235:genetics*; D008875:Middle Aged; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / Q000235:genetics; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics*
D011506:Proteins; D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; C526492:FTO protein, human