The genetic variation in the tenomodulin gene is associated with serum total and LDL cholesterol in a body size-dependent manner

We have reported that the sequence variation in the tenomodulin (TNMD) gene is associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2DM), central obesity and serum levels of systemic immune mediators in the Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study (DPS), which is a longitudinal lifestyle intervention study on 522 middle-aged persons with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). The aim of this study was to investigate whether the association with T2DM, observed in the DPS could be replicated in a larger, cross-sectional population-based random sample of 5298 men (3020 with normoglycaemia, 984 with impaired fasting glucose, 436 with IGT and 811 with T2DM) from the region of Kuopio, eastern Finland. To further explore the putative mechanisms linking TNMD to T2DM and metabolic syndrome, we studied the associations of TNMD sequence variation with lipid abnormalities characteristic to metabolic syndrome. The association with T2DM risk was not replicated, but significant associations were found with serum low-density lipoprotein and total cholesterol in a body mass index-dependent manner. These associations were also observed in the men of DPS, whereas in women these associations were not significant. These results from two independent study populations suggest that the genetic variation in TNMD could modulate cholesterol metabolism in obese men.