Abstract
Obesity is a highly heritable condition and a risk factor for other diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and cancer. Recently, genomic copy number variation (CNV) has been implicated in cases of early onset obesity that may be comorbid with intellectual disability. Here, we describe a recurrent CNV that causes a syndrome associated with intellectual disability, seizures, macrocephaly, and obesity. This unbalanced chromosome translocation leads to duplication of over 100 genes on chromosome 12, including the obesity candidate gene G protein β3 (GNB3). We generated a transgenic mouse model that carries an extra copy of GNB3, weighs significantly more than its wild-type littermates, and has excess intraabdominal fat accumulation. GNB3 is highly expressed in the brain, consistent with G-protein signaling involved in satiety and/or metabolism. These functional data connect GNB3 duplication and overexpression to elevated body mass index and provide evidence for a genetic syndrome caused by a recurrent CNV.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 14990-14994 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |
Volume | 110 |
Issue number | 37 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Sep 10 2013 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General