Variants in the Fat Mass – and Obesity-Associated (FTO) Gene Are Not Associated With Obesity in a Chinese Han Population

OBJECTIVE—Recently, genome-wide association studies have provided evidence that several common variants within the fat mass – and obesity-associated (FTO) gene were significantly associated with obesity in populations of European origin. How-ever, their effects in other ethnic populations remain to be elucidated. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—In this study, we examined the association between three FTO variants (rs8050136, rs9939609, and rs9930506) and obesity and related traits in a population-based study of 3,210 unrelated Chinese Han subjects from Shanghai and Beijing. In secondary analyses, we also tested for association with type 2 diabetes and related traits. Logistics regression and generalized linear models were used to test for additive and dominant effects of the risk alleles. RESULTS—The minor allele frequencies of rs8050136