title: Increasing association between a neuropeptide Y promoter polymorphism and body mass index during the course of development.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the association of the neuropeptide Y (NPY) promoter polymorphism rs16147 with body mass index (BMI) during the course of development from infancy to adulthood.
  
  
  METHODS
  Longitudinal, prospective study of a German community sample.
  
  
  METHODS
  n = 306 young adults (139 males, 167 females).
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants' body weight and height were assessed at the ages of 3 months and 2, 4.5, 8, 11, 15 and 19 years. NPY rs16147 was genotyped.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Controlling for a number of possible confounders, homozygote carriers of the rs16147 C allele exhibited significantly lower BMI scores when compared with individuals carrying the T allele. In addition, a significant genotype by age interaction emerged, indicating that the genotype effect increased during the course of development.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first longitudinal study to report an association between rs16147 and BMI during childhood and adolescence. The finding that this effect increased during the course of development may either be due to age-dependent alterations in gene expression or to maturation processes within the weight regulation circuits of the central nervous system.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hohmann
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Buchmann
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Witt
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rietschel
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jennen-Steinmetz
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Esser
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Banaschewski
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Laucht
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight / Q000235:genetics*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009478:Neuropeptide Y / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D009478:Neuropeptide Y