Particle.news
Download on the App Store
14 ARTICLES
·
11h ago

23andMe Study Ties Common Gene Variants to GLP-1 Weight-Loss Response and Side Effects

Experts say the effects are modest, not ready to shape everyday prescribing.

Image
Content cover image
Woman administering subcutaneous injection. She is using an injector pen on her arm. The pen has a dose selector and view window.
Image

Overview

  • The Nature paper, published Wednesday, analyzed data from 27,885 23andMe customers who self-reported GLP-1 drug use, weight change, and side effects.
  • A common GLP1R variant (rs10305420) was tied to slightly greater weight loss on GLP-1 drugs, about 0.76 kilograms per copy in the study.
  • A GIPR variant (rs1800437) predicted higher odds of nausea and vomiting with tirzepatide but showed no such link with semaglutide.
  • 23andMe is packaging the findings into a Total Health report with an interactive tool that estimates weight loss and nausea risk using genetics plus age and health factors.
  • Outside experts praised the proof of concept but stressed that effects are small, the dataset skews toward European ancestry with self-reported outcomes, and prospective replication is needed before clinical use.