Genetic studies reveal new causes of severe childhood obesity

December 07, 2009 07:47 pm | Updated 07:47 pm IST - London

The loss of a key segment of DNA may play an important role in genetic diseases. Photo: P.V. Sivakumar

The loss of a key segment of DNA may play an important role in genetic diseases. Photo: P.V. Sivakumar

Scientists in Cambridge have found that genetic alteration can lead to severe obesity in childhood.

According to a study published in Nature, the loss of a key segment of DNA may play an important role in genetic diseases.

Lead researchers Dr. Sadaf Farooqi from the University of Cambridge and Dr. Matt Hurles from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute examined 300 kids with severe obesity.

Dr. Farooqi said, “We found that part of chromosome 16 can be deleted in some families, and that people with this deletion have severe obesity from a young age. “Our results suggest that one particular gene on chromosome 16 called SH2B1 plays a key role in regulating weight and also in handling blood sugar levels. People with deletions involving this gene had a strong drive to eat and gained weight very easily.”

Dr. Matt Hurles added, “This is the first evidence that copy number variants have been linked to a metabolic condition such as obesity. They are already known to cause other disorders such as autism and learning difficulties.”

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.