Module 7 Flashcards

Genetics of Obesity

1
Q

List the 6 causes of monogenetic obesity.

A
  • Leptin deficiency – ob/ob mouse
  • Leptin receptor deficiency – db/db mouse
  • Prohormone convertase (PC1) defect
  • Melanocortin – 4-receptor (MC4R) defect
  • POMC deficiency
  • PPAR-γ defect
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2
Q

What is the most common cause of monogenetic obesity?

A

Melanocortin-4-receptor (MC4R) defect

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3
Q

How is the FTO gene locus SNP linked with obesity?

A
  • May modulate feeding through leptin/STAT3 signalling pathway
  • May impact processes of browning of WAT
  • May affect adipogenesis
  • Highly expressed in hypothalamus
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4
Q

Explain how Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits (GIANT) studies work.

A
  • Hypothesis-free analysis of genome variation
  • Uses genetic database
  • Looks for highly-replicable associations using a very high statistical significance threshold
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5
Q

What was the finding of the GIANT study?

A

BMI loci genes were found in in neuronal genes (especially those associated with appetite)

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6
Q

List the 3 ways that modifications are made in epigenetics.

A
  • Methylation/demethylation ⇒ usually supresses expression
  • Histone modification ⇒ compactness of DNA wound around histones impacts expression
  • Non-coding RNA (micro-RNA)
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7
Q

What is meant by the expression, “genetics loads the gun, our environment pulls the trigger” in relation to obesity?

A

Our genetics predisposes us to risk for obesity, however it is our environment that makes it possible for the disease to thrive.

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