Abstract
BackgroundMetabolically healthy obesity (MHO) is a considerably controversial concept as it is considered a transitory condition towards the development of different pathologies (type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, or cardiovascular disease). MHO is closely related to lifestyle and environmental factors. Epigenetics has become an essential biological tool to analyze the link between obesity and metabolic status. The aim of this study was to determine whether MHO status is conditioned by the DNA methylation (DNAm) of several genes related to lipid metabolism (lipoprotein lipase, retinoid X receptor alpha, liver X receptor, stearoyl-CoA desaturase, sterol regulatory element binding factor 1), and inflammation (LEP) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 131 prepubertal subjects with MHO phenotype after lifestyle modifications with personalized Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) combined with a physical activity (PA) program.ResultsThe DNAm of all studied genes were significantly modified in the population after 12 months of lifestyle modifications (MedDiet and PA). In addition, associations were found between the DNAm studies and BMI, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance, monounsaturated fatty acid and polyunsaturated fatty acid, moderate-vigorous PA, fat mass, and adherence to MedDiet.ConclusionsIt was found that DNAm of genes related to lipid metabolism and inflammation are also present in childhood and that this methylation profile can be modified by interventions based on MedDiet and PA.
Highlights
Obesity is a global health problem that has long-term health repercussions and involves a chronic state of inflammation and increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and some types of cancer [1,2,3]
The objective of this study was to analyze the methylation profile of genes involved in lipid metabolism after a personalized lifestyle modification based on the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and physical activity (PA), during 4-month and 12-month periods, in a prepubertal population of children with metabolically healthy obesity
We found a significant correlation between the lipoprotein lipase (LPL) DNA methylation (DNAm) levels and adherence to the MedDiet, moderate and vigorous PA, Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and abdominal visceral fat at all points of follow-up, in line with previous results [29, 30]
Summary
Obesity is a global health problem that has long-term health repercussions and involves a chronic state of inflammation and increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and some types of cancer [1,2,3]. Obesity is phenotypically a very heterogeneous pathology and, concretely, includes the metabolically healthy obese (MHO) phenotype. Healthy obesity (MHO) is a considerably controversial concept as it is considered a transitory condition towards the development of different pathologies (type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, or cardiovascular disease). The aim of this study was to determine whether MHO status is conditioned by the DNA methylation (DNAm) of several genes related to lipid metabolism (lipoprotein lipase, retinoid X receptor alpha, liver X receptor, stearoyl-CoA desaturase, sterol regulatory element binding factor 1), and inflammation (LEP) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 131 prepubertal subjects with MHO phenotype after lifestyle modifications with personalized Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) combined with a physical activity (PA) program
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