Association of the ENPP1 rs997509 polymorphism with obesity in South African mixed ancestry learners

Background: The Ectonucleotide Pyrophosphatase Phosphodiesterase1 (ENPP1) polymorphisms have been associated with metabolic traits. There is no data on the effect of ENPP1 in South African children or adults. Objective: To investigate the role of K121Q (rs1044498), rs997509 and rs9402349 in obesity and other components of the metabolic syndrome. Design: A case-control study. Subjects: Sixty four obese and 64 lean mixed ancestry learners. Setting: Western Cape, South Africa. Main outcome measure: The EN PP1 rs997509T allele is independently associated with obesity in children of mixed ancestry from South Africa. Results: The T allele frequency of the rs997509 differed significantly between obese and controls, p=0.0100 and increased the risk of being obese, p = 0.0238. Furthermore, the estimated effect of the T allele was an increase of 8.6 cm in waist circumference, 10.2 kg in weight and a corresponding 4.9 kg/m2 in BMI. Individuals carrying both the 121Q and the T allele of rs997509 were more associated with obesity (odds ratio = 3.85, 95% CI: 1.13 to 13.09) whilst those carrying the C allele of rs997509 in the presence of 121Q were likely to be lean with odds ratio of obesity 0.41 (95% CI: 0.19 to 0.87). Conclusion: Our findings suggest that ENPP1 polymorphisms may contribute to different metabolic characteristics, all of which are associated with insulin resistance in mixed ancestry children of South Africa. However, a larger study is required to confirm findings of this study.East African Medical Journal Vol. 87 No. 8 August 2010