WD And Tetratricopeptide Repeats Protein 1 (WDTC1)

WDTC1, the ortholog of Drosophila adipose gene, associates with human obesity, modulated by MUFA intake. Five WDTC1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped in 935 and 1,115 adults of two ethnically diverse US populations. Two WDTC1 SNPs strongly associated with obesity. A white population also exhibited a pattern of association between WDTC1 genotypes and obesity although of a different nature.

Those WDTC1 variants which associated with obesity likely have experienced strong positive selection in human history, when food supply was unpredictable. Given the high frequency of the major alleles in both populations, WDTC1 variation may be an important risk factor contributing to obesity in these populations.