Polygenic Risk Predicts Obesity in Both White and Black Young Adults
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
Objective
To test transethnic replication of a genetic risk score for obesity in white and black young adults using a national sample with longitudinal data.
Design and MethodsA prospective longitudinal study using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health Sibling Pairs (n = 1,303). Obesity phenotypes were measured from anthropometric assessments when study members were aged 18–26 and again when they were 24–32. Genetic risk scores were computed based on published genome-wide association study discoveries for obesity. Analyses tested genetic associations with body-mass index (BMI), waist-height ratio, obesity, and change in BMI over time.
ResultsWhite and black young adults with higher genetic risk scores had higher BMI and waist-height ratio and were more likely to be obese compared to lower genetic risk age-peers. Sibling analyses revealed that the genetic risk score was predictive of BMI net of risk factors shared by siblings. In white young adults only, higher genetic risk predicted increased risk of becoming obese during the study period. In black young adults, genetic risk scores constructed using loci identified in European and African American samples had similar predictive power.
ConclusionCumulative information across the human genome can be used to characterize individual level risk for obesity. Measured genetic risk accounts for only a small amount of total variation in BMI among white and black young adults. Future research is needed to identify modifiable environmental exposures that amplify or mitigate genetic risk for elevated BMI.
Description
Type of resource | sound recording-musical |
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Date created | July 3, 2014 |
Creators/Contributors
Author | Domingue, Benjamin W. | |
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Author | Belsky, Daniel W. | |
Author | Harris, K.M. | |
Author | Smolen, A. | |
Author | McQueen, M.B. | |
Author | Boardman, J.D. |
Subjects
Subject | Obesity |
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Subject | Genome-wide association |
Subject | body mass index |
Subject | young adults |
Subject | african americans |
Subject | human genetics |
Subject | genomic databases |
Subject | population genetics |
Genre | Sound |
Bibliographic information
Related item | |
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Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/rv324yc5503 |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license (CC BY).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Domingue BW, Belsky DW, Harris KM, Smolen A, McQueen MB, Boardman JD (2014) Polygenic Risk Predicts Obesity in Both White and Black Young Adults. PLoS ONE 9(7): e101596. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0101596
Collection
Graduate School of Education Open Archive
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- bdomingu@stanford.edu
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