Project description:In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches.
The SCOOP samples are part of the Obesity group and will undergo exome sequencing. Severe Childhood Onset Obesity Project (SCOOP) is a sub-cohort of the Genetics Of Obesity Study (GOOS) cohort established by Sadaf Farooqi and Steve O’Rahilly at the University of Cambridge over the last 12 years. The GOOS cohort contains >4,000 patients of diverse geographic origin, many of whom have monogenic and syndromic forms of obesity, and includes patients that are offspring of consanguineous union. SCOOP is a subset of >1500 UK Caucasian patients with severe, early onset obesity (all patients have a BMI Standard Deviation Score (SDS) > 3 and obesity onset before the age of 10 years), in whom all known monogenic causes of obesity have been excluded. GWAS data on the SCOOP cohort will be available (WTCCC2 independent study) at the time of the start of this study. Data from this cohort has demonstrated that the prevalence of the common obesity risk alleles in FTO, MC4R and NEGR1 are amongst the highest within SCOOP, demonstrating its value also in the study of genetic variants with an impact on more common obesity. For further information with regard to this cohort please contact Sadaf Farooqi (isf20@medschl.cam.ac.uk).
Project description:In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches. The GS samples are part of the Obesity group and will undergo exome sequencing.
Project description:In the UK10K project we propose a series of complementary genetic approaches to find new low frequency/rare variants contributing to disease phenotypes. These will be based on obtaining the genome wide sequence of 4000 samples from the TwinsUK and ALSPAC cohorts (at 6x sequence coverage), and the exome sequence (protein coding regions and related conserved sequence) of 6000 samples selected for extreme phenotypes. Our studies will focus primarily on cardiovascular-related quantitative traits, obesity and related metabolic traits, neurodevelopmental disorders and a limited number of extreme clinical phenotypes that will provide proof-of-concept for future familial trait sequencing. We will analyse directly quantitative traits in the cohorts and the selected traits in the extreme samples, and also use imputation down to 0.1% allele frequency to extend the analyses to further sample sets with genome wide genotype data. In each case we will investigate indels and larger structural variants as well as SNPs, and use statistical methods that combine rare variants in a locus or pathway as well as single-variant approaches. These TwinsUK samples are a subset of the TwinsUK cohort samples with a BMI>=40 that will be exome sequenced by the Obesity group.
Project description:Primary outcome(s): Abdominal visceral fat volume;Body mass index
Study Design: Observational Study Model : Case-control, Time Perspective : Cross-sectional, Enrollment : 250, Biospecimen Retention : Collect & Archive- Sample with DNA, Biospecimen Description : colorectal cancer
Project description:In the UK, around 1 in 16 men and 1 in 20 women will develop bowel cancer at some point in their lives. Most bowel cancers happen when a type of growth in the bowel called an adenoma eventually becomes cancerous. Cutting out adenomas reduces the risk of developing bowel cancer.
Certain people are more likely to have adenomas than others, for example people who are overweight. People who are overweight are also more likely to develop liver disease by laying too much fat down in the liver. Studies in Asia have shown that people with fatty liver disease are more likely to have adenomas and these are more commonly found in the part of the bowel (right colon) furthest from the bottom end.
Information on the link between obesity, fatty liver disease and adenomas is very limited, particularly in the Western population.
The investigators will assess the link between body weight, fatty liver and adenomas in the UK population. 1430 patients will be invited; some through the bowel cancer screening programme and some with symptoms such as low blood count, bleeding or changed bowel habit. These patients will already have been referred for a camera test looking into the bowel, called a colonoscopy. Information including height, weight and some health questions will be taken. Blood samples will be taken. The investigators will compare the number of patients with adenomas who have liver disease or who are overweight with those who don’t. This information will be used to develop a scoring system to predict risk of adenomas. This will help the investigators to decide if undertaking colonoscopies in these patients will identify those at increased risk of bowel cancer.
Project description:Maternal obesity is linked with increased adverse outcomes for mother and fetus. However, the metabolic impact of excessive fat accumulation within the altered hormonal context of pregnancy is not well understood. We used a murine model of obesity, the high fat diet-fed C57BL/6J mouse to determine adipose tissue-mediated molecular mechanisms driving metabolic dysfunction throughout pregnancy. Remarkably, obese mice exhibited a normalization of visceral fat accumulation at late-stage pregnancy (-53%, P<0.001 E18.5) to achieve levels comparable in mass (per gram of body weight) to that of non pregnant, control diet fed mice. Moreover, whilst obese pregnant mice showed a marked glucose intolerance and apparent insulin resistance at mid-stage pregnancy (E14.5), glucose homeostasis converged with that of lean pregnant mice at late-stage pregnancy, suggesting an unexpected amelioration of the worsening metabolic dysfunction in obese pregnant mice. Transcriptomic analysis of the late-stage visceral fat indicated reduced de novo lipogenic drive (Me1, Fasn, Scd1, Dgat2), retinol metabolism (Rdh11, Rbp4) and inflammation (Mcp1, Tnfα) in obese pregnant mice that was confirmed functionally by their lower adipose proinflammatory macrophage density. Elevated expression of estrogen receptor a (ERα) in visceral adipose tissue was identified as potential unifying mechanism for the transcriptional changes and reduced adiposity of late stage obese pregnancy. Support for a role for ERα was provided by experiments showing that the ERα selective agonist PPT suppressed lipogenesis in primary mouse adipocytes and suppressed Me1, Fasn, SCD1 and Dgat2 mRNA levels in mature female human ChubS7 clonal fat cells. Our data reveal a novel role for elevated visceral adipocyte estrogen signaling as a protective mechanism against visceral fat hypertrophy and inflammation in late pregnancy. Pregnant high fat, pregnant control fat, non pregnant high fat, non pregnant control fat. Five biologial replictes each (20 samples).