Variant rs1421085 in the FTO gene contribute childhood obesity in Chinese children aged 3-6 years

Abstract

Objective: Childhood obesity has become a public health crisis worldwide due to an alarming increase in its prevalence. Numerous studies have demonstrated that the common variants (rs1421085 and rs17817449) of the fat mass and obesity associated (FTO) gene are associated with the obesity in adult and children in European. However, these two variants of FTO gene in childhood obesity have not been established in Chinese populations. Methods: In this population-based case-control study, 158 obese preschooler and 397 normal population controls aged 3-6 years were recruited between June 2007 and April 2008 from 6 kindergartens of Huai-an city in Jiangsu Province, China. All the children were conducted the body examinations and provided blood sample to detect the serum lipid levels and FTO rs1421085 T>C and rs17817449 T>G genetic variances. Results: In the association analysis between the FTO gene variant and risk of childhood obesity, compared with the rs1421085TT wide-type genotype, rs1421085 CC and CT/CC genotypes were associated with 59% and 71% increased risks of childhood obesity (adjusted OR = 1.59, 95%CI = 1.00-2.53 for CC; adjusted OR = 1.71, 95%CI = 1.10-2.65 for CT/CC), while the rs17817449 T > G variant was not associated with the significantly increased risk of childhood obesity. In addition, the higher level of serum TG (>0.64 mmol/l) was associated with 93% increased risk of childhood obesity (adjusted OR = 1.93, 95%CI = 1.30-2.87), and the higher serum HDL-C level (>1.14 mmol/l) was associated with 45% decreased risk of childhood obesity (adjusted OR = 0.55, 95%CI = 0.37-0.81). But the quantitative phenotypes analysis regarding the levels of TC, TG, HDL-C, and LDL-C were not found to be significantly associated with the variants of rs1421085 and rs17817449 both in the cases and controls. Conclusion: The FTO rs1421085 T>C polymorphism may modulate the magnitude of dyslipidemia in Chinese early-onset obesity. © 2012 Asian Oceanian Association for the Study of Obesity.