Effect of polymorphisms in the leptin and leptin receptor genes on binge eating in obese children and adolescents

• Grant number: 11/05322-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: March 01, 2012
• End date: November 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Marcio Corrêa Mancini
• Grantee: Clarissa Tamie Hiwatashi Fujiwara
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Obesity consists in an important public health issue and its prevalence increases worldwide. It is estimated that 30% of patients seeking overweight treatment present the binge eating disorder. These individuals have altered levels of leptin, being one of the possible mechanisms associated with the pathogenesis of binge eating, the impairment of leptin action due to its low production and/or leptin resistance. Genetic factors participate in the multifactorial etiology of eating disorders and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the leptin gene (LEP) and its receptor (LEPR) may alter leptin levels, increasing the risk of developing binge eating and, consequently, the aggravation of obesity. The investigation of these variants will lead to a better comprehension of genetic factors that predispose to this eating behavior, once studies in the pediatric population remain scarce in Brazil. The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of genetic variants of LEPR and LEP on the severity of binge eating, obesity risk and metabolic profile in obese children and adolescents and also determine the allele and genotype frequencies of SNPs rs1137101, rs1137100 and rs8179183 of LEPR, and rs7799039 of LEP in our patients. Our study will include 500 obese children and adolescents and a control group of 150 normal weight individuals aged between 8 and 17 years old. The sample will be characterized by anthropometric parameters, metabolic profile and binge eating severity. The molecular study will be conducted for further analysis of results and discussion.