Obesity is a world wide epidemic resulting from the confrontation of mankind's ancient genetic make-up with a modern affluent environment. The large animal literature has provide a rich backround of useful information to approach the genetic basis for obssity. Conquering the genetic defects in animals that produce obsity has led to understanding some rare forms of human obesity. We know that leptin deficiency, defects in the leptin receptor, abnormal control of the agouti gene and an altered gene for carboxypeptidase all produce obesity in animals with corresponding abnormalities in humans. The level of hereditability for human obesity has been examined using twins, adoption studies and family studies. These studies suggest that the genetic component of human obesity is between 25 and 70%. Finally, information about the role of different genes in obesity has been explored using animals that overexpress or are deficient in genes that might be related to obesity. In conclusion it would appear that the genetic susceptibility to the more severe forms of human is obesity is stronger than for the milder types of overweight.
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