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Interactions between a polygenic risk score for plasma docosahexaenoic fatty acid concentration, eating behaviour, and body composition in children

International Journal of Obesity volume 46, pages 977–985 (2022)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background

The relationship between eating behaviour and current body weight has been described. However little is known about the effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in this relationship. Genetic contribution to a certain condition is derived from a combination of small effects from many genetic variants, and polygenic risk scores (PRS) summarize these effects. A PRS based on a GWAS for plasma docosahexaenoic fatty acid (DHA) has been created, based on SNPs from 9 genes.

Objective

To analyze the interaction between the PRS for plasma DHA concentration, body composition and eating behaviour (using the Children Eating Behaviour Questionnaire) in childhood.

Subjects/Methods

We analyzed a subsample of children from the Maternal, Adversity, Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment (MAVAN) cohort with PRS and measurements of eating behaviour performed at 4 years of age (n = 210), 6 y (n = 177), and body fat determined by bioelectric impedance at 4 y and 6 y or by air displacement plethysmography and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at 8 y (n = 42 and n = 37). PRS was based on the GWAS from Lemaitre et al. 2011 (p threshold = p < 5*10-6), and a median split created low and high PRS groups (high PRS = higher DHA level).

Results

In ALSPAC children, we observed an association between PRS and plasma DHA concentration (β = 0.100, p < 0.01) and proportion (β = 0.107, p < 0.01). In MAVAN, there were interactions between PRS and body fat on pro-intake scores in childhood, in which low PRS and higher body fat were linked to altered behaviour. There were also interactions between PRS and pro-intake scores early in childhood on body fat later in childhood, suggesting that the genetic profile and eating behaviour influence the development of adiposity at later ages.

Conclusions

A lower PRS (lower plasma PUFA) can be a risk factor for developing higher body fat associated with non-adaptive eating behaviour in childhood; it is possible that the higher PRS (higher plasma PUFA) is a protective feature.

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Code is available upon request to the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the mothers and their children who participated in this study. We thank Irina Pokhvisneva and Sachin Patel for their technical support.

Funding

This work was supported by National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT-PCHA/Doctorado Nacional/2014-63140222) (AJ), Proyecto de Consolidación de la internacionalización de la investigación y postgrado de la Universidad de Chile UCH-1566 (AJ), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) [PJT-166066, PPS] and the JPB Foundation through a grant to the JPB Research Network on Toxic Stress: A Project of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. Dr. Levitan acknowledges support from the Cameron Holcombe Wilson Chair in Depression Studies, CAMH and University of Toronto.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile

    Angela Jaramillo-Ospina & María Luisa Garmendia

  2. Department of Obstetrics & Department of Neonatology, School of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile

    Paola Casanello

  3. Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Ross Andersen

  4. Centre for Addition and Mental Health (CAMH) and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Robert D. Levitan

  5. Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Michael J. Meaney & Patricia Pelufo Silveira

  6. Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Michael J. Meaney & Patricia Pelufo Silveira

  7. Translational Neuroscience Programme, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Singapore, Singapore

    Michael J. Meaney

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  1. Angela Jaramillo-Ospina
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Contributions

All authors contributed to this work. Conceptualization PPS, AMJO, MJM; data curation AMJO; formal analysis AMJO; funding acquisition PPS, MJM, RDL; investigation PPS, RDL, RA; methodology PPS, RDL, RA, MJM; project administration PPS; resources MJM, PPS, RDL; supervision PPS, MLG, PC; validation AMJO; visualization AMJO, writing–original draft AMJO, PPS, MLG, PC; writing–review & editing AMJO, PPS, MLG, PC.

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Correspondence to Patricia Pelufo Silveira.

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Jaramillo-Ospina, A., Casanello, P., Garmendia, M.L. et al. Interactions between a polygenic risk score for plasma docosahexaenoic fatty acid concentration, eating behaviour, and body composition in children. Int J Obes 46, 977–985 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-022-01067-6

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