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Common melanocortin-3 receptor variants are not associated with obesity, although rs3746619 does influence weight in obese individuals

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Abstract

The melanocortin-3 receptor is a vital link in the leptin–melanocortin signaling pathway in the brain and has a role in the regulation of energy homeostasis. It was hypothesized that common polymorphisms in MC3R could increase susceptibility for the development of obesity, but different studies have led to contradictory results. In this study, we investigated the association of SNPs in MC3R with the development of obesity in an extensive Caucasian population. Using the HapMap, we selected two tagSNPs (rs6127698 and rs3746619) that cover all of the common genetic variation in MC3R and genotyped them in 1008 obese cases and 313 normal weight controls. Statistical analysis of the data showed that none of the analyzed SNPs were associated with obesity. However, linear regression analysis did show that SNP rs3746619 has an influence on weight (P = 0.015) in the obese population only. Furthermore, a trend for association with BMI in the obese population was observed for this SNP (P = 0.039). Taken together, these data are consistent with the involvement of rs3746619 in weight regulation among obese individuals. However, further research including replication of our results is necessary to elucidate the role of MC3R in complex obesity.

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Acknowledgments

Research was funded by a PhD grant of the Institute for the Promotion of Innovation through Science and Technology in Flanders (IWT-Vlaanderen) to DZ. SB holds a postdoctoral fellowship obtained from the Flemish Fund for Scientific Research (F.W.O. Vlaanderen). This work was supported by a grant (G0028.05) from the “Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Vlaanderen” to LVG and WVH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medical Genetics, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium

    Doreen Zegers, Sigri Beckers & Wim Van Hul

  2. Department of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Metabolism, Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium

    Ilse L. Mertens & Luc F. Van Gaal

Authors
  1. Doreen Zegers
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  2. Sigri Beckers
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  3. Ilse L. Mertens
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  4. Luc F. Van Gaal
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  5. Wim Van Hul
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Correspondence to Wim Van Hul.

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Zegers, D., Beckers, S., Mertens, I.L. et al. Common melanocortin-3 receptor variants are not associated with obesity, although rs3746619 does influence weight in obese individuals. Endocr 38, 289–293 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12020-010-9386-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12020-010-9386-5

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