POMC and metabolic syndrome: Taken together, our synopsis reveals, first, a potential interaction between the POMC system and stress in the assumingly at least partially shared pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders and MetS, second, that modulation of the POMC system, in particular of the melanocortin 3 and 4 receptors, might be a promising target for the treatment of MetS and, third, that the DNA methylation status of POMC might speculatively be a promising biomarker for MetS in general and, possibly, in particular in the context of stress-related psychiatric conditions such as PTSD.