title: Association of FTO polymorphisms with early age of obesity in obese Italian subjects.
abstract: Obesity is recognized as a major health problem worldwide. Genetic factors play a major role in obesity, and genomewide association studies have provided evidence that several common variants within the fat mass- and obesity-associated (FTO) gene are significantly associated with obesity. Very limited data is available on FTO in the Italian population. Aims of our study are to investigate: (1) the association of FTO gene SNPs rs9939609 and rs9930506 with body mass index (BMI) and obesity-related parameters in a large cohort (n = 752) of Italian obese subjects; (2) the association between the two FTO SNPs and age of onset of obesity. Our results demonstrate a strong association between FTO SNPs rs9939609 (P < 0.043) and rs9930506 (P < 0.029) with BMI in the Italian population. FTO rs9930506 was significantly associated with higher BMI in a G allele dose-dependent manner (BMI + 1.4 kg/m² per G allele). We also observed that the association with BMI of the two FTO variants varied with age, with the carriers of the risk alleles developing an increase in body weight earlier in life. In conclusion, our study further demonstrates a role of the genetic variability in FTO on BMI in a large Italian population.
authors.affiliation: Endocrinology and Diabetes, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Cagliari, Policlinico Universitario, 09042 Cagliari, Italy.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sentinelli
authors.forename: Michela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Incani
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Coccia
authors.forename: Danila
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Capoccia
authors.forename: Valentina Maria
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Cambuli
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Romeo
authors.forename: Efisio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cossu
authors.forename: Maria Gisella
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Cavallo
authors.forename: Frida
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Leonetti
authors.forename: Marco Giorgio
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Baroni
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D000483:Alleles; D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; D001835:Body Weight / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D056726:Genetic Association Studies; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins; D000071516:Alpha-Ketoglutarate-Dependent Dioxygenase FTO; C526492:FTO protein, human