NOS3 and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency: [29], [30] Since obesity has previously been associated with diabetes risk in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study, and obese individuals have been reported to have reduced NO bioavailability compared to controls whose weight is in the normal range, the aims of this study were to evaluate the association between the NOS3 G894T polymorphism and prevalent diabetes, and to determine whether interaction between BMI and NOS3 genotype contributes to susceptibility to the disorder in the large biracial population-based cohort. [31], [32].