Association between rs4994 variant in β3-Adrenergic receptor and obesity in Vietnamese preschool-age children, independent of eating behaviors.

Background: The Arg64 allele of the rs4994 (Trp64Arg) variant in the β3-adrenergic receptor (ADRB3) gene is involved in the control of energy balance by altering lipolysis and thermogenesis in adipocytes, ultimately contributing to the development of obesity. The objective of our study was to investigate the association between the rs4994 variant of the ADRB3 gene and obesity in Hanoi preschool-age children, adjusting for their eating behaviors.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed involving 708 children with normal weight and 304 children with obesity aged 3-5 years from 36 kindergartens in Hanoi, Vietnam. Cheek mucosa cell samples were used for DNA extraction, and genotyping at the ADRB3-rs4994 locus was performed using the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method (PCR-RFLP). Eating behaviors were assessed using the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ). Binary logistic regression analysis was employed to examine the association between the rs4994 variant and obesity, adjusting for confounding factors such as age, sex, residence, birth weight, and eating behaviors.

Results: The frequency of the C allele in the group with obesity was 16.4%, which was higher than in the control group (11.7%, P = 0.003). Children with the CC genotype exhibited significantly greater weight and weight-for-age Z-score compared to those with the TT and TC genotypes (P = 0.004 and 0.03, respectively). Following univariate and multivariate analyses adjusted for age, sex, residence, birth weight, and eating behaviors, a significant association between the rs4994 variant and obesity was observed (P < 0.05).

Conclusions: This study indicated that the ADRB3-rs4994 variant can be considered as an independent risk factor for obesity in Vietnamese preschool children.