Genetic Mechanisms that Control Human Metabolism Identified

A recent genome-wide association study of 722 circulating metabolite levels in over 8800 people could help shed light on the genetic pathways underlying obesity as well as help develop more personalized ways to maintain a healthy weight.

The researchers from King’s College London and the NIHR BioResource looked at blood samples to measure the metabolite levels, which provide a snapshot of an individual’s wellbeing and the mechanisms that control key physiological processes. Metabolite levels can be affected by nutrition, drugs and the gut microbiome. However, the way the body breaks down food is known to be strongly driven by a person’s genetics.

The team was able to identify 202 unique genomic regions whose variations are associated with the levels of 478 different metabolites. These included 74 genomic regions not associated with any metabolites in previous works. They confirmed the findings in an independent cohort of 1,768 people.

According to Cristina Menni, senior author of the study published recently in Metabolites, “These results could have many practical implications. Human metabolism underlies a lot of different areas of human health and disease. Our findings could help understand certain diseases.”

“Some of the metabolites we looked at are linked to BMI and could give us an insight into obesity in some individuals,” she added. “It is very early research, but in the future these findings could help to develop approaches to maintaining a healthy weight which take into account a person’s genetic profile.”