NIH researchers link single gene variation to obesity

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-10/nksn-nrl102915.php

Public Release: 29-Oct-2015
NIH researchers link single gene variation to obesity
Variation in the BDNF gene may affect brain's regulation of appetite, study suggests
NIH/Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

A single variation in the gene for brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) may influence obesity in children and adults, according to a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study suggests that a less common version of the BDNF gene may predispose people to obesity by producing lower levels of BDNF protein, a regulator of appetite, in the brain. The authors propose that boosting BDNF protein levels may offer a therapeutic strategy for people with the genetic variation, which tends to occur more frequently in African Americans and Hispanics, than in non-Hispanic Caucasians. The study is published in the journal Cell Reports.

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