Author Archives: Aisha I Abdullah PhD

A case study of a baby with Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) highlights the unusual respiratory features that result from inheriting two mutant copies of the BBS10 gene.  The report, “Bardet-Biedl syndrome presenting with laryngeal web…

Native Hawaiians of Polynesian ancestry are at an increased risk of obesity, heart failure, and type 2 diabetes, a study has found. The greater risk of diabetes is linked to a genetic variant that is uniquely prevalent in Native Hawaiians. The study, “…

Genetic predisposition, mental health symptoms, personality traits, substance abuse, and high body mass index (BMI) all are early risk factors for eating disorders in adolescence, a study has determined. These findings may have clinical implications for preventing and treating disordered eating behaviors, especially among teenagers, the…

The Mediterranean diet reduces obesity-related metrics in adolescents, but it is not as effective in males who have a high genetic risk for obesity, a study has found. In female adolescents, the diet significantly lowered body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, and metabolic syndrome, even in…

In a $100 million deal, Rhythm Pharmaceuticals is selling its rare pediatric disease priority review voucher (PRV), granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with the approval of Imcivree (setmelanotide) to treat three rare genetic obesity disorders. …

Genetic screening in fruit flies is a relatively simple, cost-effective, and rapid process with the potential to increase understanding of genetic obesity development in humans. Specifically, the fruit fly is a workable model organism for high-throughput screening of candidate genes associated with eating behavior and obesity in humans, according to…

Adult survivors of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), who are at high risk for obesity, exhibit alterations in genetic variants associated with body mass index (BMI) — a measure of body fat based on height and weight — following cranial radiation therapy (CRT), a study reports.

A study has described a rare case of a girl with Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) caused by a newly identified mutation, who also developed a second rare disorder — Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease (LCPD) — that affects the hips. This is only the second documented case of a patient diagnosed with…