👤 George Luiz Lins Machado-Coelho

Obesity is the largest global public health epidemic, increasingly affecting children and adolescents. Studies suggest that genetic markers such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) may be associated with the development of obesity. Obesity susceptibility genes identified include alpha-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase (FTO), endothelial nitric oxide (NOS3) and apolipoprotein B (APOB). Furthermore genetic predisposition can interact with other environmental factors, such as clinical risk factors for obesity. In this context, the potential interaction between these SNPs and clinical risk factors such as non-exclusive breastfeeding, high birth weight, and a family history of chronic diseases warrants investigation. There is a clear need for more research on the FTO, NOS3 and APOB genes in Brazilian children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the associations between SNPs in the FTO (rs1121980), NOS3 (rs1799983) and APOB (rs693) genes and obesity as well as to investigate the combined influence of significant SNPs in children and adolescents in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil. A cross-sectional population-based study was conducted with elementary school students aged 6-17 years in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, between April and December 2021. The study evaluated sociodemographic, clinical, and biochemical variables and the SNPs rs1121980, rs1799983 and rs693 in the FTO, NOS3 and APOB genes, respectively, for associations with obesity. The study revealed that the prevalence of obesity was notably high, reaching 8.5% in the study population. Homozygotes for the risk alleles of the FTO and NOS3 genes (genotypes AA and TT, respectively) remained significant, with both showing a more than twofold increased likelihood of being obese [OR: 2.07 (CI: 1.02-4.20) and 2.49 (CI: 1.08-5.73), respectively]. The same combination of alleles associated with clinical risk factors (nonexclusive breastfeeding, high birth weight, family history of diabetes, obesity and dyslipidemia) was associated with a significantly greater chance of being obese at a young age. Our results support the idea that the SNP rs1121980 in the FTO gene and rs1799983 in the NOS3 gene can affect the occurrence of obesity in Brazilian children and adolescents living in urban areas. Show less

Atherosclerotic vascular changes can begin during childhood, providing risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in adulthood. Identifiable risk factors such as dyslipidemia accelerate this process for some children. The apolipoprotein B (APOB) gene could help explain the inter-individual variability in lipid levels among young individuals and identify groups that require greater attention to prevent CVD. A cross-sectional study was conducted with school-aged children and adolescents in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais. The study evaluated cardiovascular risk factors' variables and XbaI polymorphism in the APOB gene for associations with increased total cholesterol (TC). The prevalence of increased TC was notably high, reaching 68.9% in the study population. Carriers of the variant T allele were 1.45 times more likely to develop increased TC in a dominant model (1.09-1.94, p = 0.011). After adjustments, excess weight and a family history of dyslipidemia interacted significantly with XbaI polymorphism in increased TC, resulting in Odds Ratio of 1.74 (1.11-2.71, p = 0.015) and 2.04 (1.14-3.67, p = 0.016), respectively. The results suggest that XbaI polymorphism in the APOB gene may affect the lipid profile of Brazilian children and adolescents and could contribute to the CVD in adulthood. Show less

Arterial hypertension (AH) is implicated in vascular health and contributes significantly to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. In addition to the contribution of usual risk factors for AH, elucidating the influence of genetic factors is a promising area of investigation. Therefore, we evaluated the association between AH and cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) and genetic polymorphisms in communities in Southeast Brazil. A total of 515 adults aged 18-91 years, who were cross-sectionally assessed between 2015-2016, were included. Demographic, clinical, behavioral, anthropometric characteristics, and laboratory parameters and 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms in seven candidate genes involved in cardiovascular risk ( There was a significant association between age >60 years (odds ratio [OR] =6.74), alcohol dependence (OR=3.84), smoking (OR=1.74), overweight (OR=1.74), high plasma triglyceride (TG) levels (OR=1.98) and low high-density lipoprotein (HDL-c) (OR=6.22), diabetes (OR=3.68), and insulin resistance (OR=2.40) and AH. A significant association was observed between rs4721 in The interaction of the T allele of the rs4721 polymorphism in Show less