Genetic Contributions to Childhood Obesity: Association of Candidate Gene Polymorphisms and Overweight/Obesity in Korean Preschool Children

This study was aimed to investigate the association of candidate gene polymorphisms and obesity or overweight in young Korean children. A total of 190 Korean preschool children (96 control, 48 overweight, and 46 obese children) were genotyped for the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) insertion (I)/deletion (D), angiotensin II type 2 receptor (AT2) C3123A, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 T869C, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) T460C, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α G308A polymorphisms. No differences were found among the groups with respect to age, sex, birth weight, blood pressure levels, and serum concentrations of glucose and total cholesterol. Obese children showed a higher incidence of ACE DD genotype and D allelic frequency compared to the controls (odds ratio [OR], 2.7, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01–7.21; OR, 2.5, 95% CI, 1.49–4.19; all P < 0.05). The frequency of TC genotype and C allele in the TGF-β1 T869C polymorphism (OR, 2.08, 95% CI, 1.01–4.27; OR, 1.93, 95% CI, 1.15–3.21) and that in the VEGF T460C polymorphism (OR, 2.5, 95% CI, 1.19–5.28; OR, 2.15, 95% CI, 1.26–3.68) was also higher in obese children than in control subjects (all P < 0.05). Overweight children exhibited a higher frequency of the A allele in the AT2 C3123A polymorphism compared to the controls (OR, 1.72, 95% CI, 1.03–2.88, P < 0.05). There were no differences in the TNF-α G308A polymorphism among the groups. The ACE I/D, AT2 C3123A, TGF-β1 T869C, and VEGF T460C polymorphisms can affect susceptibility to obesity or overweight in Korean children.