Level D· Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studiesLaboratory StudyEurope PMC

Systematic functional characterization of non-coding regulatory SNPs associated with central obesity

Dong SS., Duan YY., Zhu RJ., Jia YY., Chen JX., Huang XT.

Laboratory Study, published in Am J Hum Genet (2025) — summary generated from the PubMed abstract.

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Level D· Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studiesEvidence level of this study

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

  • Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
  • Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
  • Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
  • Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
  • Emerging · Emerging topic under active research
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This page is generated from the PubMed record. The Thai description is an automated summary of bibliographic fields and the abstract, not a full translation, and is not medical advice.

Study type
Laboratory Study
Journal
Am J Hum Genet (2025)
Reported sample size
—
Source database
Europe PMC
PMID
39753113
PMCID
PMC11739881
DOI
10.1016/j.ajhg.2024.11.005
Citations
5

Abstract (original English)

Central obesity is associated with higher risk of developing a wide range of diseases independent of overall obesity. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified more than 300 susceptibility loci associated with central obesity. However, the functional understanding of these loci is limited by the fact that most loci are in non-coding regions. To address this issue, our study first prioritized 2,034 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) based on fine-mapping and epigenomic annotation analysis. Subsequently, we employed self-transcribing active regulatory region sequencing (STARR-seq) to systematically evaluate the enhancer activity of these prioritized SNPs. The resulting data analysis identified 141 SNPs with allelic enhancer activity. Further analysis of allelic transcription factor (TF) binding prioritized 20 key TFs mediating the central-obesity-relevant genetic regulatory network. Finally, as an example, we illustrate the molecular mechanisms of how rs8079062 acts as an allele-specific enhancer to regulate the expression of its targeted RNF157. We also evaluated the role of RNF157 in the adipogenic differentiation process. In conclusion, our results provide an important resource for understanding the genetic regulatory mechanisms underlying central obesity.

What this study does not prove

  • • This study does not prove SVF is an approved treatment or a replacement for standard care.
  • • This is preclinical work; animal or laboratory results cannot be applied to humans.

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

How we grade evidence
HumansGenetic Predisposition to DiseaseUbiquitin-Protein LigasesTranscription FactorsPolymorphism, Single NucleotideAllelesAdipogenesisGene Regulatory NetworksEnhancer Elements, GeneticGenome-Wide Association Study

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