Based on work done in flies and subsequently in mice, the gene WDTC1 (WD And Tetratricopeptide Repeats 1) is postulated to contribute to susceptibility to obesity in humans. Very little is known about the function of this gene. There is a single fly ortholog, adp, for which a loss-of-function allele has been identified; an RNAi-targeting construct and a UAS-wild-type construct have been generated.
The human WDTC1 gene has not been introduced into flies.
Animals homozygous for a loss-of-function allele of Dmel\adp are viable, but exhibit decreased mobility. Loss of adp activity promotes increased fat storage and increased lifespan under starvation conditions. The fat cells of adp adult mutant flies contain greatly enlarged lipid droplets which result in fat body hypertrophy; whole flies show a two-fold higher accumulation of triglycerides relative to wild type. Overexpression of adp in fat body results in reduced triglyceride levels and reduced fat accumulation.
Experiments in flies led to characterization in mice. Mice heterozygous for a loss-of-function allele of the Wdtc1 gene are obese and insulin-resistant with significantly elevated plasma insulin and leptin levels ( MGI:2685541 ).
[updated Jul. 2017 by FlyBase; FBrf0222196]
Obesity is an abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual's ideal body weight. Obesity is associated with increased risk of illness, disability, and death. (http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/obesity).
The development of obesity is recognized as having both genetic and environmental components (https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/203-obesity-genetic-or-environmental).
One to one (1 human to 1 Drosophila).
High-scoring ortholog of human WDTC1 (1 Drosophila to 1 human); Dmel\adp shares 38% identity and 52% similarity with the human gene.
