Genetic Analyses of Complex Phenotypes Through the Example of Anorexia Nervosa and Bodyweight Regulation

Abstract

Genetic Analyses of Complex Phenotypes Through the Example of Anorexia Nervosa and Bodyweight Regulation Abstract. Genetics variants are important for the regulation of bodyweight and also contribute to the genetic architecture of eating disorders. For many decades, family studies, a subentity of so-called formal genetic studies, were employed to determine the genetic share of bodyweight and eating disorders and found heritability rates exceeding 50 % with both phenotypes. Because of this significant contribution of genetics, the search for those genes and their variants related to the variance in bodyweight and the etiology of eating disorders - or both - was commenced by the early 1990s. Initially, candidate genes studies were conducted targeting those genes most plausibly related to either phenotype, especially based on pathophysiological considerations. This approach, however, implicated only a few genes in the regulation of bodyweight and did not provide significant insights into the genetics of eating disorders. Driven by considerable methodological advances in genetic research, especially related to the introduction of so-called genome-wide association studies by the beginning of the 21st century, today more than 1,000 variants/loci have been detected that affect the regulation of bodyweight. Eight such loci have been identified regarding anorexia nervosa (AN). These results as well as those from cross-disorder analyses provide insights into the complex regulation of bodyweight and demonstrated unforeseen pathomechanisms for AN.