Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 3 — Observational / field trialPeer-reviewed

Epigenome-wide association study of body mass index, and the adverse outcomes of adiposity

Simone Wahl, Alexander Drong, Benjamin Lehne, Marie Loh, William R. Scott, Sonja Kunze, Pei-Chien Tsai, Janina S. Ried, Weihua Zhang, Youwen Yang, Sili Tan, Giovanni Fiorito, Lude Franke, Simonetta Guarrera, Silva Kasela, Jennifer Kriebel, Rebecca C. Richmond, Marco Adamo, Uzma Afzal, Mika Ala‐Korpela, Benedetta Albetti, Ole Ammerpohl, Jane F. Apperley, Marian Beekman, Pier Alberto Bertazzi, S. Lucas Black, Christine Blancher, Marc Jan Bonder, Mario Brosch, Maren Carstensen‐Kirberg, Anton J. M. de Craen, Simon de Lusignan, Abbas Dehghan, Mohamed Elkalaawy, Krista Fischer, Oscar H. Franco, Tom R. Gaunt, Jochen Hampe, Majid Hashemi, Aaron Isaacs, Andrew Jenkinson, Sujeet Jha, Norihiro Kato, Vittorio Krogh, Michael Laffan, Christa Meisinger, Thomas Meitinger, Zuan Yu Mok, Valeria Motta, Hong Kiat Ng, Zacharoula Nikolakopoulou, Georgios Nteliopoulos, Salvatore Panico, Natalia Pervjakova, Holger Prokisch, Wolfgang Rathmann, Michael Roden, Federica Rota, Michelle Ann Rozario, Johanna K. Sandling, Clemens Schafmayer, Katharina Schramm, Reiner Siebert, P. Eline Slagboom, Pasi Soininen, Lisette Stolk, Konstantin Strauch, E Shyong Tai, Letizia Tarantini, Barbara Thorand, Ettje F. Tigchelaar, ­Rosario ­Tumino, André G. Uitterlinden, Cornelia M. van Duijn, Joyce B. J. van Meurs, Paolo Vineis, Ananda R. Wickremasinghe, Cisca Wijmenga, Tsun-Po Yang, Wei Yuan, Alexandra Zhernakova, Rachel L. Batterham, George Davey Smith, Panos Deloukas, Bastiaan T. Heijmans, Christian Herder, Albert Hofman, Cecilia M. Lindgren, Lili Milani, Pim van der Harst, Annette Peters, Thomas Illig, Caroline L. Relton, Mélanie Waldenberger, Marjo‐Riitta Järvelin, Valentina Bollati, Richie Soong, Tim D. Spector, James Scott, Mark I. McCarthy

Nature · 2016

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Summary

This large epigenome-wide association study, involving multiple international cohorts, investigated associations between DNA methylation markers and body mass index and related adverse outcomes of adiposity. The research suggests that epigenetic modifications may be associated with obesity and its health consequences, though the direction of causality and mechanistic pathways remain to be established. The findings contribute to understanding of how molecular-level epigenetic variation correlates with metabolic and health phenotypes.

UK applicability

As a molecular epidemiological study, the findings are potentially applicable to UK populations insofar as DNA methylation patterns and their associations with adiposity may be shared across European ancestry groups. However, the study does not directly address dietary, farming system, or food environment factors that influence UK health outcomes.

Key measures

DNA methylation patterns at CpG sites; body mass index; adiposity-related health outcomes

Outcomes reported

The study examined associations between DNA methylation (epigenetic modifications) and body mass index, as well as adverse health outcomes related to adiposity across multiple population cohorts.

Theme
Nutrition & health
Subject
Measurement methods & nutrient profiling
Study type
Research
Study design
Observational cohort; epigenome-wide association study (EWAS)
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
International
System type
Human clinical
DOI
10.1038/nature20784
Catalogue ID
BFmovi24gk-ru5ukt

Topic tags

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