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FTO gene polymorphism and longitudinal changes in nutritional/obesity status in children and adolescents: Schoolchildren’s health cohort study

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Abstract

The fat mass and obesity-associated gene (FTO) has been extensively reported in the literature related to nutritional status, but there has been limited description of the genetic contribution to obesity risk during childhood and adolescence, especially in Latin Americans. This study aims to associate the rs9939609 polymorphism, of the FTO gene, with changes in nutritional status in Brazilian schoolchildren followed for 3 years. A longitudinal study was conducted with 355 schoolchildren, aged 7–15 years in 2011/2012 and subsequently re-evaluated in 2014/2015. Nutritional (obesity) status was classified by identifying those exceeding recommended thresholds for waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), body mass index (BMI), and body fat percentage (BF%). The rs9939609 polymorphism was genotyped by a real-time polymerase chain reaction. Relative risk (RR with 95% confidence interval) of obesity status by FTO gene polymorphism was calculated by Poisson regression. The risk group was determined for genotypes with the allele A polymorphism, and regression models were adjusted for age, sex, height, ethnicity, and geographical location. Considering the longitudinal changes in status over the 3-year follow-up, the RR of developing a WC exceeding the threshold recommended (WC >75th age and sex-standardized percentile), or remaining with this condition, was higher in children with AT/AA genotype. For WC, the RR was 1.66 (1.07; 2.58) in crude analysis and 1.17 (1.01; 1.35) following adjustment for age (years), gender, ethnicity, and geographical location. The comparative risk of abdominal obesity, assessed by WHtR (not recommended threshold ≥0.50), was 53% and 8%, respectively, higher in AT/AA compared to TT genotype.

Conclusion: This is one of the first longitudinal investigations to show a significant association between the A allele of the rs9939609 polymorphism and individuals with higher than recommended WC and WHtR measures in Brazilian children and adolescents.

What is known:

• The FTO has an effect on increases in body mass index (BMI) among children and adolescents.

• It established the association between FTO and overweight/obesity in Caucasians.

What is new:

• The presence of the risk allele of rs9939609 (FTO gene) polymorphism is associated with increased abdominal fat in Brazilian schoolchildren.

• Was detected an association between FTO gene polymorphism (rs9939609) with WC in follow-up cohort and changes in WC and WHtR follow-up over 3 years, during childhood and adolescence growth.

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Data availability

The database used and analyzed in the present study is not publicly available as its information may compromise the participants’ privacy and consent involved in the research. However, the data are available from the corresponding author (EA), upon request.

Abbreviations

BF%:

Body fat percentage

BMI:

Body mass index

CI:

Confidence interval

FTO gene:

rs9939609 polymorphism

FTO:

Fat mass and obesity-associated gene

MAF:

Minor allele frequency

PCR:

Polymerase chain reaction

RR:

Relative risk

SNPs:

Single nucleotide polymorphisms

W:

Waist circumference

WHtR:

Waist-to-height ratio

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledged Miria Suzana Burgos (in memoriam) for having entrusted the use of data collected in previous research, under her coordination.

Funding

This research was supported by the Brazilian Agencies Foundation for Research Support of Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS), the National Council of Technological and Scientific Development (CNPq), and the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Level Personnel (CAPES). This study was financed in part by CAPES - Finance Code 001.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Sciences, University of Santa Cruz do Sul, Av. Independência, 2293 – Bloco 34, sala 3430, Universitário, 96815-900, Santa Cruz do Sul, RS, 96815-900, Brazil

    Éboni Marília Reuter

  2. Department of Health Sciences, Postgraduate Program in Health Promotion, University of Santa Cruz do Sul, Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil

    Cézane Priscila Reuter & Andréia Rosane de Moura Valim

  3. Postgraduate Program in Health Promotion, University of Santa Cruz do Sul, Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil

    João Francisco de Castro Silveira

  4. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Hull, Kingston upon Hull, UK

    Sean Carroll & James Philip Hobkirk

  5. Postgraduate Program in Medical Sciences: Endocrinology, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Pâmela Ferreira Todendi

  6. Postgraduate Program in Child & Adolescent Health, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

    Elza Daniel de Mello

Authors
  1. Éboni Marília Reuter
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  2. Cézane Priscila Reuter
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  4. Sean Carroll
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  7. Andréia Rosane de Moura Valim
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  8. Elza Daniel de Mello
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Contributions

EMR, CPR, and EDM participated in all phases, conceptualized the study, and carried out the analysis and interpretation. SC, JPH, and JFCS contributed to analysis and interpretation of study findings. PFT and ARMV participated in the study design and carried out the technical aspects of the experiments. All authors revised the manuscript and approved the final version.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Éboni Marília Reuter.

Ethics declarations

Ethical approval

The research was approved by the Committee of Ethics in Research with Human Beings of the University of Santa Cruz do Sul, protocol number 1.836.983, and the procedures followed were in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration.

Consent to participate

All the subjects whose parents or guardians signed the free and informed consent form were included in the study. Likewise, the subjects’ right to privacy and confidentiality was guaranteed, with no information identifying the subjects in text or images.

Consent for publication

N/A

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests. JFCS received research grants by CAPES as a master’s student. The other authors have no financial relationship with the organizations that sponsored the research.

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Communicated by Peter de Winter

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Reuter, É.M., Reuter, C.P., de Castro Silveira, J.F. et al. FTO gene polymorphism and longitudinal changes in nutritional/obesity status in children and adolescents: Schoolchildren’s health cohort study. Eur J Pediatr 180, 3325–3333 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-021-04120-0

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