Association of ADIPOQ gene with obesity and adiponectin levels in Malaysian Malays

Studies have shown that single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the ADIPOQ gene have been linked with obesity and with adiponectin levels in various populations. Here, we aimed to investigate the association of ADIPOQ rs17366568 and rs3774261 SNPs with obesity and with adiponectin levels in Malaysian Malays. Obesity parameters and adiponectin levels were measured in 574 subjects. Genotyping was performed using real-time polymerase chain reaction and Sequenom MassARRAY. A significant genotypic association was observed between ADIPOQ rs17366568 and obesity. The frequencies of AG and AA genotypes were significantly higher in the obese group (11%) than in the non-obese group (5%) (P=0.024). The odds of A alleles occurring among the obese group were twice those among the non-obese group (odds ratio 2.15; 95% confidence interval 1.13-4.09). However, no significant association was found between allelic frequencies of ADIPOQ rs17366568 and obesity after Bonferroni correction (P>0.025) or between ADIPOQ rs3774261 and obesity both at allelic and genotypic levels. ADIPOQ SNPs were not significantly associated with log-adiponectin levels. GA, GG, and AG haplotypes of the ADIPOQ gene were not associated with obesity. We confirmed the previously reported association of ADIPOQ rs17366568 with the risk of obesity. ADIPOQ SNPs are not important modulators of adiponectin levels in this population.