Until now there have been few molecular epidemiological studies regarding the effects of weight changes on metabolism in the general population. In a study published in the journal BMC Medicine, DZD scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München, the German Diabetes Center Düsseldorf (DDZ) and the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbrücke evaluated molecular data of the KORA study*. The applied techniques, metabolomics and transcriptomics, allow the simultaneous determination of a variety of low molecular weight metabolites and gene activities, respectively. This integrated metabolomics and transcriptomics approach improves e.g. the understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying the association of weight gain with changes in insulin sensitivity.

*For more than 20 years the Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) platform has been examining the health of thousands of citizens in Augsburg and environs.

Original publication:
Wahl S, Vogt S, Stückler F, Krumsiek J, Bartel J, Kacprowski T, Schramm K, Carstensen M, Rathmann W, Roden M, Jourdan C, Kangas AJ, Soininen P, Ala-Korpela M, Nöthlings U, Boeing H, Theis FJ, Meisinger C, Waldenberger M, Suhre K, Homuth G, Gieger C, Kastenmüller G, Illig T, Linseisen J, Peters A, Prokisch H, Herder C, Thorand B, Grallert H. Multi-omic signature of body weight change: results from a population-based cohort study. doi:10.1186/s12916-015-0282-y,
BMC Medicine March 9, 2015

Link to the publication:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/13/48/abstract