Genetic Variations of Circulating Adiponectin Levels Modulate Changes in Appetite in Response to Weight-Loss Diets.

Context: Adiponectin plays key roles in regulating appetite and food intake.

Objective: To investigate interactions between the genetic risk score (GRS) for adiponectin levels and weight-loss diets varying in macronutrient intake on long-term changes in appetite and adiponectin levels.

Design, setting, and participants: A GRS was calculated based on 5 adiponectin-associated variants in 692 overweight adults from the 2-year Preventing Overweight Using Novel Dietary Strategies trial.

Main outcome measures: Repeated measurements of plasma adiponectin levels and appetite-related traits, including cravings, fullness, prospective consumption, and hunger.

Results: Dietary fat showed nominally significant interactions with the adiponectin GRS on changes in appetite score and prospective consumption from baseline to 6 months (P for interaction = 0.014 and 0.017, respectively) after adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, baseline body mass index, and baseline respective outcome values. The GRS for lower adiponectin levels was associated with a greater decrease in appetite (P < 0.001) and prospective consumption (P = 0.008) among participants consuming a high-fat diet, whereas no significant associations were observed in the low-fat group. Additionally, a significant interaction was observed between the GRS and dietary fat on 6-month changes in adiponectin levels (P for interaction = 0.021). The lower GRS was associated with a greater increase in adiponectin in the low-fat group (P = 0.02), but it was not associated with adiponectin changes in the high-fat group (P = 0.31).

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that individuals with varying genetic architecture of circulating adiponectin may respond divergently in appetite and adiponectin levels to weight-loss diets varying in fat intake.