Physiologic and Endocrine Correlates of Overweight and Obesity in African Americans and Caucasians

摘要

Obesity has reached epidemic levels and yet the incidence continues to rise. The current study is seeking to examine the hypothesis that obesity may reflect dysfunctioning of the hypothalamic- pituitary-adrenal(HPA) axis in response to stressors. African American persons are at greatest risk, but reasons for this difference are unknown. We will study 120 men and women of Caucasian and African American ethnicity and examine their responses to physiologic stressors: exercise and ingestionof a meal. Methods: The HPA axis will be studied in some detail by usingtwo stressor paradigms and two steroid regimens. We expect to be able todetect subtle differences in HPA axis reactivity in obese individuals that might contribute to morbidity and perhaps even make individuals resistant to therapeutic interventions. Results: We have enrolled 124 participants, with 93 completed. Data collection and analyses are proceeding on schedule. Two abstracts were presented in 2006 and one is submitted and accepted for presentation in Summer 2007. Conclusions: We are on schedule for all study milestones and look forward to being able to answer the important questions regarding the potential role of the HPA axis in obesity.