Obesity gene affects thousands
Thursday February 4th, 2010
A small number of people with serious weight problems have a genetic defect, British researchers revealed last night.
The findings apply to just seven out of every thousand people who are dangerously obese. As there are estimated to be 700,000 of these people in England alone, it means there are thousands of people who may be suffering from the genetic problem.
Researchers at Imperial College, London, UK, say they have identified that some "morbidly obese" people are missing part of their DNA.
They have not found the genetic fault in any people of healthy weight - suggesting a strong link with obesity.
The genetic defect, reported in the journal Nature, was first identified in overweight people with learning difficulties - but scientists then found the same problem in other people with obesity.
The researchers say the genetic fault is unlikely to be the only one contributing to obesity.
Researcher Professor Philippe Froguel said the weight gain experienced by those with the genetic fault was not inevitable - and might be treated by support and medical interventions, such as weight loss surgery.
He said: "Although the recent rise in obesity in the developed world is down to an unhealthy environment, with an abundance of unhealthy food and many people taking very little exercise, the difference in the way people respond to this environment is often genetic.
"It is becoming increasingly clear that for some morbidly obese people, their weight gain has an underlying genetic cause."
Fellow researcher Dr Robin Walters explained: "Although individually rare, the combined effect of several variations of this type could explain much of the genetic risk for severe obesity, which is known to run in families.
"Previously identified genetic influences on weight gain have a much less drastic effect - increasing weight by just one or two pounds, for example."
The British Heart Foundation warned the main factors for high levels of obesity were unhealthy eating and lack of exercise.
Cardiac nurse June Davison said: "A better understanding of these genes could help us identify people who may be more vulnerable to obesity. They could then be offered preventative measures, support and treatment to help improve their long term health.
"However, this is not the only reason for the high levels of obesity we're currently seeing. Worryingly, around one in four people in the UK are obese and the main contributors are eating unhealthily and not being active enough."
"A novel highly-penetrant form of obesity due to deletions on chromosome
16p11.2" Nature, Wednesday 3 February 2010.
Tags: Diet & Food | Fitness | Genetics | UK News
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