A recent meta-analysis including 96,551 East and South Asians reported that the minor allele for the rs9939609 FTO SNP (perfect LD with rs8050136) significantly increased the risk of both obesity and T2D, and the association between the FTO locus and risk of T2D remained significant after adjustment for BMI[18]. Here, FTO is linked to obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.