Quantitative trait Loci for regional adiposity in mouse lines divergently selected for food intake.

Objective: Obesity is thought to result from an interaction between genotype and environment. Excessive adiposity is associated with a number of important comorbidities; however, the risk of obesity-related disease varies with the distribution of fat throughout the body. The aim of this study was to map quantitative trait loci (QTLs) associated with regional fat depots in mouse lines divergently selected for food intake corrected for body mass.

Calorie-restricted mice that gorge show less ability to compensate for reduced energy intake.

Caloric restriction in mice can trigger gorging behaviour, which is characterized by periods of excessive food ingestion in a short time. Animals that gorge are thought to have a reduced metabolism compared to those that nibble their food over a longer period and might therefore be more able to compensate for reduced energy intake. We examined whether mice that gorged showed less weigh loss during restriction.

A paternally imprinted QTL for mature body mass on mouse chromosome 8.

Body mass (BM) is a classic polygenic trait that has been extensively investigated to determine the underlying genetic architecture. Many previous studies looking at the genetic basis of variation in BM in murine animal models by quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping have used crosses between two inbred lines. As a consequence it has not been possible to explore imprinting effects which have been shown to play an important role in the genetic basis of early growth with persistent effects throughout the growth curve.