'Hungry gene' discovery may help solve the obesity problem

Scientists have discovered a "hungry gene" which they believe could cause obesity. A study has identified a possible genetic root to the insatiable appetite and slow metabolism in some people. Looking at 2,101 patients who were severely obese, they found those with mutations of a gene called KSR2 were hungrier and burned fewer calories than people with a normal copy of the gene. Dr Sadaf Farooqi, of Cambridge University, said: "Changes in diet and levels of physical activity underlie the recent increase in obesity. However, some people gain weight more easily than others. This variation between people is largely influenced by genetic factors. "The discovery of a new obesity gene, KSR2, demonstrates that genes can contribute to obesity by reducing the metabolic rate - how well the body burns calories." Dr Farooqi said the discovery could provide clues as to how obesity develops and help develop new drugs to treat the condition as well as type-2 diabetes, which is linked with it. The study was published in the journal Cell

Canadian university gets $750K grant for cardiac genetics research

Memorial University in St. John's, Newfoundland has received a $750,000 grant from the Provincial Government and the Research & Development Corporation to support research into the genetics of heart diseases. The goal of the studies, which will employ advanced genomic tools, is to develop diagnostic tools to help prevent sudden cardiac death. The university intends to use the grant money to acquire a next-generation DNA sequencing platform. "Genetic researchers in this province, and across Atlantic Canada, currently outsource all services related to Next-Generation DNA Sequencing to other regions of the country, costing valuable time and money," said Terry-Lynn Young, an associate professor of genetics at Memorial University, said in a statement. "Today's funding announcement will allow us to continue to solve genetic puzzles of medical importance to our province and the world and train the next generation of researchers at Memorial University." The research funded by the grant also will delve into the ethical, economic, environmental, legal, and social implications of sudden death due to inherited heart conditions. The RDC, which is a provincial corporation charged with improving R&D performance in Newfoundland and Labrador, is providing C$500,000 of the funding, while the remaining funds are coming from Newfoundland's Department of Innovation, Business and Rural Development

Studies find gene links to world's biggest killer

Scientists have found 13 new gene variants that increase a person's risk of developing heart disease, the world's number one killer, in a series of large-scale international genetic studies. The discovery of 13 previously unknown gene variations and the confirmation of around 10 more should offer clues about how heart ailments such as coronary artery disease develop, and lead to new and more effective treatments, the researchers said. The findings also suggest it may be worth mapping someone's profile of genetic variants for heart problems as part of routine clinical care in the future, with an eye to being able to offer more personalized prevention or treatment plans. "With such information we should be able to better identify people at high risk early on in life and quickly take the steps to neutralize that excess risk," said Themistocles Assimes of Stanford University School of Medicine in the United States, one of many scientists across the world who worked on the study. - Reuters

Study uncovers new diabetes genes (UK)

Twelve new genes linked with type 2 diabetes have been found in a study into the differences in people's DNA and their risk of having the condition. A consortium including Edinburgh University scientists have identified "important clues to the biological basis of type 2 diabetes". It is hoped the findings will lead to better ways of treating the condition. The genes tend to be involved in working cells producing insulin, which controls levels of glucose in blood. The 12 new genes brings the total number linked with type 2 diabetes to 38. The study was led by researchers at Oxford University and forms part of the Wellcome Trust case control consortium

Mapping Heart Disease

Though heart disease is a major cause of disability and death, very little is understood about its genetic underpinnings. Recently, an international team of investigators at the Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) and other organizations shed new light on the subject. Studying Drosophila (fruit flies), the team investigated 7061 genes and built a detailed map that shows how a portion of these genes contribute to heart function and disease. Importantly, the researchers identified many genes that had not previously been associated with heart disease. The research is being published as the cover story in the April 2 issue of Cell.

Morbidly obese 'may have missing genes' (UK)

A small number of extremely overweight people may be missing the same chunk of genetic material, claim UK researchers. The findings, published in the journal Nature, could offer clues to whether obesity can be "inherited" in some cases. Imperial College London scientists found dozens of people - all severely obese - who lacked approximately the same 30 genes. The gene "deletion" could not be found in people of normal weight. While much of the "obesity epidemic" currently affecting most Western countries has been attributed to a move towards high-calorie foods and more sedentary lifestyles, scientists have found evidence that genes may play a significant role in influencing weight gain in some people - BBC

Genes that saved us plague us 3,500 years later (Canada)

"About 3,400 years ago, a plague is believed to have slashed across Europe, killing vast numbers of people. No written records of the unknown disease survive today. But scientists at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute have helped uncover a piece of evidence in the genes of modern Caucasians. A small cluster of genes protected part of early Europe's population against a disease that must have been horrific, perhaps on the scale of the Black Death. But there was a cost: Those genes, still carried by many today, raise the risks of heart disease, diabetes and hypertension." Thirty-four-hundred years ago I think we can imagine that something cataclysmic happened to humans, probably an infection or a plague that wiped out 90 per cent of people," said Alex Stewart, a geneticist and microbiologist at the Heart Institute. "It could have been almost any viral infection. Could have been reminiscent of Ebola. "The people that were able to survive and have children, and have the children survive -- they had to have something really resistant to the infection." A natural disaster or war wouldn't have selected survivors based on their genes. "DNA doesn't protect you against earthquake." But there was a catch. "Nothing in evolution comes for free. Fast-forward 3,400 years later, maybe we're not exposed to those pathogens (causes of infection) any longer." Yet the protective genes are still there, and they're hard on the heart. "All of a sudden, what was beneficial then is detrimental now." Most of the bad effects of this gene cluster occur later in life, when people are in their 50s and 60s. That's too late to prevent them from having children and passing on the gene." - The Province

Scientists discover new genetic variation that contributes to diabetes

"Scientists have identified a genetic variation in people with type 2 diabetes that affects how the body's muscle cells respond to the hormone insulin, in a new study published today in Nature Genetics. The researchers, from Imperial College London and other international institutions, say the findings highlight a new target for scientists developing treatments for diabetes. Previous studies have identified several genetic variations in people with type 2 diabetes that affect how insulin is produced in the pancreas. Today's study shows for the first time a genetic variation that seems to impair the ability of the body's muscle cells to use insulin to help them make energy. People with type 2 diabetes can have problems with the body not producing enough insulin and with cells in the muscles, liver and fat becoming resistant to it. Without sufficient insulin, or if cells cannot use insulin properly, cells are unable to take glucose from the blood and turn it into energy. Until now, scientists had not been able to identify the genetic factors contributing to insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes. In the new research, scientists from international institutions including Imperial College London, McGill University, Canada, CNRS, France, and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, looked for genetic markers in over 14,000 people and identified four variations associated with type 2 diabetes. One of these was located near a gene called IRS1, which makes a protein that tells the cell to start taking in glucose from the blood when it is activated by insulin. The researchers believe that the variant they have identified interrupts this process, impairing the cells' ability to make energy from glucose. The researchers hope that scientists will be able to target this process to produce new treatments for type 2 diabetes." - EurekAlert

Cardiovascular disease gets personal

"As personalized cancer treatment edges into the clinic, doctors and scientists are hoping that cardiovascular disease - the world's top killer - will be next to benefit from genomics. An avalanche of studies has linked genetic variants to various cardiovascular conditions and to patients' responses to commonly prescribed drugs. First up could be genetic guidance for the anti-clotting agents warfarin and clopidogrel, followed by testing for genetic variants responsible for conditions such as atrial fibrillation, a heart-rhythm abnormality that is a leading cause of stroke" - Nature

Gene links heart and gum disease

"A genetic link between dental disease and heart attacks has been found by German researchers. Gum disease - periodontitis - is known to be associated with heart disease but how exactly they are linked is unknown. Now the University of Kiel team has found a common gene mutation in people with periodontitis and heart attack patients, a conference heard. Study leader Dr Arne Schaefer said gum disease should be taken very seriously and treated as early as possible. Both coronary heart disease (CHD) and periodontitis are associated with the same risk factors - most importantly smoking, diabetes and obesity" - BBC

Why heart patients are more susceptible to depression

"An international team of researchers have identified certain genetic factors that might explain why individuals with heart disease are likely to suffer from depression. The team from The Miriam Hospital, The Montréal Heart Institute, University of Montréal and McGill University has discovered certain genes related to vascular system that might help predict depression in individuals with heart disease" - Newstrack

Genetic Information Service (UK)

"Around 500 young people die suddenly each year with seemingly no explanation or cause of death, leaving families devastated and bewildered. The British Heart Foundation and Department of Health's new Genetic Information Service helps relatives deal with the consequences of losing a loved one to an inherited heart condition. This service supports bereaved families get an assessment by experts in an appropriate clinic. This could potentially save hundreds of lives by detecting and treating an inherited heart condition in other family members. If someone in your family has been diagnosed with or died from an inherited heart condition call GIS on 0300 456 8383. Lines are open from 9am to 6pm Monday to Friday (calls are charged at local rate)." - BHF

Search for blood pressure secrets reveals a surprising new syndrome

Yale researchers investigating the genetic causes of blood pressure variation have identified a previously undescribed syndrome associated with seizures, a lack of coordination, developmental delay and hearing loss. The findings, published this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, illustrate the power of genetic studies not only to find causes of chronic ailments, but also to identify a common cause in a seemingly unrelated set of symptoms in different parts of the body. - Science Centric

New genomic markers associated with risk of heart disease and early heart attack

Five short reports published simultaneously by the journal Nature Genetics have for the first time identified clusters of genetic markers associated with heart attack and coronary heart disease. - Science Daily

Gene test that can help prevent heart disease

"A genetic test has been developed which can help take action to prevent heart disease, say experts. Three Australian experts had called for more support to screen families with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH), which involves a defective gene that prevents liver cells from taking up cholesterol from the blood. The call follows reports that UK authorities may soon recommend at-risk children under the age of 10 years be screened for the FH gene"