DEPICT used 37,427 human gene expression microarray samples to identify tissues and cell types in which genes near BMI-associated SNPs are highly expressed, and then tested for enrichment of specific tissues by comparing results with randomly selected loci matched for gene density. In total, 27 out of 31 significantly enriched tissues were in the central nervous system (CNS) (out of 209 tested; Fig. 2a and Supplementary Table 18). Current results are not sufficient to isolate specific brain regions important in regulating BMI. However, we observe enrichment not only in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland—key sites of central appetite regulation—but even more strongly in the hippocampus and limbic system, tissues that have a role in learning, cognition, emotion and memory.
