No correlation was detectable between clinical parameters of obesity like BMI or waist circumference and the magnitude of [Ca2+]ex-induced IL-1ß release, indicating that the increased [Ca2+]ex-induced response of MDM and AT is a feature of severe obesity per se, which is not quantitatively linked to excess body weight, and which might therefore already be present at early stages of the disease. This evidence concerns the gene IL1B and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency.