Question

Scenario

Jared and Matthew are identical twins that grew up together bit have lived apart since college. Jared lives in New York City and is a certified public accountant in high-profile accounting firm, working long hours in a stressful environment. Matthew attended college in California, where he studied nutrition and exercise physiology, and now manages the wellness program at a large fitness center. At age 30, the two brothers are noticeably different in weight and body shape. Jared has a body mass index of 29 compared with Matthew’s 23. Jared has developed central obesity, hypertension, and problems with blood sugar regulation, all signs of a tendency towards developing type 2 diabetes. In contrast, Matthew is lean and had normal blood pressure and normal blood sugar levels.

1. As part of the nutrition assessment, Jared is found to be homozygous for IL1-511C>T and heterozygous for IL-6-174G>C. These genes encode for interleukin-1 and interleukin-6 and these particular single nucleotide polymorphisms have been strongly associated with chronic inflammation. What would you discuss with Jared about the implications of these genotype findings and his susceptibility to chronic disease.

Answer 1