Rhythm Pharmaceuticals is offering a free genetic testing program — Uncovering Rare Obesity — to help individuals with severe obesity find out if there is a genetic cause for their excess weight. The program is available in the U.S., and includes free genetic testing, which can be taken in a doctor’s…
A man’s body mass index might influence his sperm’s epigenome — chemical changes in DNA that determine how each gene is read — and even his children’s epigenome, although the magnitude of this effect on offspring is likely small, if it exists at all, a recent study suggests. The…
While genes do predispose people to obesity, changes in dietary and lifestyle factors are the primary reasons for the massive increase in obesity rates in the last five decades, new research suggests. The study, “Quantifying the impact of genes on body mass index during the obesity epidemic:…
A new international consortium based in Paris, and funded largely by the 28-member European Union, intends to speed the diagnosis of rare diseases, while also accelerating the development of treatments for the 95% of such illnesses that currently don’t have one. The European Joint Programme on Rare Diseases (EJP…
A person’s weight is not influenced by the genetic makeup of their siblings, according to a recent study looking at a large sample of American youngsters. The study, “Testing for family influences on obesity: The role of genetic nurture,” was published in the journal Health Economics. Many studies…
The University of Alberta, in Canada, is recruiting people with Bardet-Biedl syndrome and Alström syndrome for a pivotal Phase 3 trial testing the investigational anti-obesity therapy setmelanotide. The study, run by Rhythm Pharmaceuticals, which is developing the treatment, is expected to begin…
A variant of the TFAP2B gene is associated with the development of obesity and insulin resistance from adolescence into young adulthood, a large study of schoolchildren in Estonia found. The effect is present in males in their teenage years but emerges later in females, during young adulthood, and is probably…
A high genetic risk for obesity in Hispanic mothers is associated with increased fetal weight throughout pregnancy, according to new research in the U.S. The data also showed that, depending on the sex of the offspring, this risk had a different effect on fetal and birth weights in Black and…
It wasn’t until Gordana Loleska’s son David was 14 years old that doctors in their native North Macedonia diagnosed his kidney, vision, and hearing problems as Alport syndrome. Although she had known for years that something was wrong, the news that David would battle a lifelong rare disease devastated…
People genetically predisposed toward obesity — particularly females — are more likely to have lower incomes and household wealth later in life, mostly due to attaining less education throughout their lives, a recent study suggests. The study, “Effect of Genetic Propensity for Obesity on Income and Wealth…
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