FTO gene

Fat mass and obesity-associated protein also known as alpha-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase FTO is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the FTO gene located on chromosome 16. As one homolog in the AlkB family proteins, it is the first mRNA demethylase that has been identified. Certain variants of the FTO gene appear to be correlated with obesity in humans.

Function

The amino acid sequence of the transcribed FTO protein shows high similarity with the enzyme AlkB which oxidatively demethylates DNA. Recombinant FTO protein was first discovered to catalyze demethylation of 3-methylthymine in single-stranded DNA, and 3-methyluridine in single-stranded RNA, with low efficiency. The nucleoside N6-methyladenosine, an abundant modification in RNA, was then found to be a major substrate of FTO. The FTO gene expression was also found to be significantly upregulated in the hypothalamus of rats after food deprivation and strongly negatively correlated with the expression of orexigenic galanin-like peptide which is involved in the stimulation of food intake.

Gene

A gene is a locus (or region) of DNA that encodes a functional RNA or protein product, and is the molecular unit of heredity. The transmission of genes to an organism's offspring is the basis of the inheritance of phenotypic traits. Most biological traits are under the influence of polygenes (many different genes) as well as the gene–environment interactions. Some genetic traits are instantly visible, such as eye colour or number of limbs, and some are not, such as blood type, risk for specific diseases, or the thousands of basic biochemical processes that comprise life.

Genes can acquire mutations in their sequence, leading to different variants, known as alleles, in the population. These alleles encode slightly different versions of a protein, which cause different phenotype traits. Colloquial usage of the term "having a gene" (e.g., "good genes," "hair colour gene") typically refers to having a different allele of the gene. Genes evolve due to natural selection or survival of the fittest of the alleles.

Eugene (given name)

Eugene is a common (masculine) first name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (eugenēs), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (eu), "well" and γένος (genos), "race, stock, kin".Gene is a common shortened form. The feminine variant is Eugenia or Eugénie.

Male foreign-language variants include:

Notable people

Christianity

Military

Gene (novel)

Gene is a thriller novel by Stel Pavlou (born 1970), published in 2005 in England by Simon & Schuster. It is published in several languages with some title changes. The Italian edition has the title La Conspirazione del Minotauro (The Minotaur Conspiracy). The novel is about a fictional New York detective, James North, who in the process of hunting down a criminal, uncovers a genetics experiment to unlock past lives through genetic memory, therefore achieving a kind of immortality. In so doing North discovers his own origins, that of a soldier from the Trojan War who is reincarnated seven times through history, forced to confront his nemesis each time, all for the loss of his one true love.

Characters

Cyclades (born circa 1300 BC)

Incarnations of Cyclades

Athanatos (born circa 1500 BC)

Incarnations of Athanatos

FTO

FTO is a three letter acronym which can stand for: