Major deCODE-led Study Underscores Role of the Brain ...(deCODE andsenior author on the paper. ...),Health

"Today's findings also underscore our ability to employ our population-based resources and statistical knowhow in Iceland as a cornerstone of large-scale multinational collaborations to identify and replicate the inherited causes of the most complex phenotypes. These new variants may point to valuable new drug targets, and we are already integrating them into deCODEme.(TM) We look forward to expanding upon our productive collaboration with colleagues in the US and Europe to continue to increase our understanding of the biology that underlies obesity," Dr. Stefansson added.

About obesity and this study

Obesity results from the consumption of more calories than the body uses, and it represents a growing public health problem worldwide, particularly in industrialized countries. Obesity is a major risk factor for diseases such as type 2 diabetes, a range of cardiovascular conditions, and even some forms of cancer. One third of the population of the United States is now classified as obese, and the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around the world as many as 400 million people are obese.

Obesity is a quintessentially complex condition. Behavioral factors such as diet, eating habits and lack of exercise play a major role, but these interact with genetic factors that influence the regulation of appetite as well as how the body uses energy and stores it as fat. The aim of the study published today was to identify more of these genetic factors as a means of better understanding the biological processes that contribute to obesity. This information can be used to inform efforts to develop better means of combatting it. The discovery phase of the study published today correlated more than 300,000 SNPs with data on weight and body mass index (BMI). BMI is a measure used to relate weight to height, calculated as an individual's weight in kilograms
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