Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Vol 81, 597-600, Copyright © 1996 by Endocrine Society

ARTICLES

Genetic and environmental correlations among hormone levels and measures of body fat accumulation and topography

AG Comuzzie, J Blangero, MC Mahaney, SM Haffner, BD Mitchell, MP Stern and JW MacCluer
Department of Genetics, Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, San Antonio, Texas 78228, USA. agcom@darwin.sfbr.org

In this study we partition the phenotypic correlations between body fat measures and serum levels of hormones with known, or suspected, lipolytic effects into their genetic and environmental components. Using variance decomposition techniques, we are able to estimate the pleiotropic effects of genes and/or shared environmental factors that give rise to the phenotypic correlations previously reported between these traits. We used data from a large sample of randomly ascertained Mexican-American families living in San Antonio, TX. Data were available for 582 individuals in 26 pedigrees. Levels of sex hormone- binding globulin, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, insulin, insulin-like growth factor I, total T4, and total T3 were assayed. The measures of body fat accumulation and topography included body mass index, subscapular/triceps ratio, and relative fat patterning index. The results of this analysis demonstrate that significant phenotypic correlations among these traits can arise from three underlying conditions: 1) entirely from shared genetic effects (pleiotropy), 2) entirely from shared random environmental effects, or 3) a combination of both effects. However, we also show that it is possible for significant genetic and environmental correlations to interact in such a way as to produce a phenotypic correlation that itself would not be considered significant.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				B. Sternfeld, K. Liu, C. P. Quesenberry Jr., H. Wang, S.-F. Jiang, M. Daviglus, M. Fornage, C. E. Lewis, J. Mahan, P. J. Schreiner, et al. Changes over 14 Years in Androgenicity and Body Mass Index in a Biracial Cohort of Reproductive-Age Women J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., June 1, 2008; 93(6): 2158 - 2165. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J Esparza-Gordillo, J M Soria, A Buil, J C Souto, L Almasy, J Blangero, S R de Cordoba, and J Fontcuberta Genetic correlation between plasma levels of C4BP isoforms containing {beta} chains and susceptibility to thrombosis J. Med. Genet., January 1, 2004; 41(1): e5 - 5. [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. C.L. Tou and C. E. Wade Determinants Affecting Physical Activity Levels In Animal Models Experimental Biology and Medicine, September 1, 2002; 227(8): 587 - 600. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. Emilien, M. Ponchon, C. Caldas, O. Isacson, and J.-M. Maloteaux Impact of genomics on drug discovery and clinical medicine QJM, July 1, 2000; 93(7): 391 - 423. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. J. Rosen Serum Insulin-like Growth Factors and Insulin-like Growth Factor-binding Proteins: Clinical Implications Clin. Chem., August 1, 1999; 45(8): 1384 - 1390. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. J. Rosen, E. S. Kurland, D. Vereault, R. A. Adler, P. J. Rackoff, W. Y. Craig, S. Witte, J. Rogers, and J. P. Bilezikian Association Between Serum Insulin Growth Factor-I (IGF-I) and a Simple Sequence Repeat in IGF-I Gene: Implications for Genetic Studies of Bone Mineral Density J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., July 1, 1998; 83(7): 2286 - 2290. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				A. G. Comuzzie and D. B. Allison The Search for Human Obesity Genes Science, May 29, 1998; 280(5368): 1374 - 1377. [Abstract] [Full Text]