Gene Links to Anorexia Identified: Largest Gene Study of Anorexia Detects Common and Rare Variants

[HuckleB]

Gene Links to Anorexia Identified: Largest Genetic Study of the Eating Disorder Detects Common and Rare Variants
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/11/101119120840.htm

"Scientists at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have identified both common and rare gene variants associated with the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. In the largest genetic study of this psychiatric disorder, the researchers found intriguing clues to genes they are subjecting to further investigation, including genes active in neuronal signaling and in shaping interconnections among brain cells.

...


"This is the first genome-wide association study on a large anorexia cohort, as well as the first study of copy number variations in the disorder," said Hakonarson. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) search for single-nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs -- common gene variants that typically act as pointers to a gene region with a small effect on raising disease risk. The study team also performed a parallel search for copy number variations (CNVs), rarer variants that usually have a stronger impact on disease risk.

The sample size was the largest used in an AN gene study -- DNA came from 1,003 AN patients, all but 24 of them female, from various sources, having an average age of 27 years. For comparison, there was a control group of 3,733 pediatric subjects (average age of 13), drawn from the Children's Hospital pediatric network.

...

"Our study suggests that both common SNPs and rare CNVs contribute to the pathogenesis of anorexia nervosa," said Hakonarson. "The gene variants we discovered are worthy of further analysis in independent cohorts. However, the relatively modest number of anorexia cases explained by these results we found suggests that many other candidate genes remain unknown. Future studies will require much larger sample sizes to detect additional gene variants involved in this complex disorder."

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It will be interesting to see where this goes from here. Anyway, it's quite interesting, and might be another step forward in understanding the disorder, as well as hope for successful treatment.

:hi:

[NRaleighLiberal]

1. Thanks for posting this - as a father of an anorexic daughter, it is

a confirmation of how we've felt all along - that there must be some genetic aspect of this. After going through the horror of it all when she was 17, she is now 25 and doing well, which is a miracle, and a testament to her strength....

:hi:

[HuckleB]

2. You're welcome!

I'm happy to hear your daughter is doing well. AN is incredibly difficult to overcome.

Take care.

Cheers!