SNCAIP and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency: Similarly, SNCAIP (BF8-ChrZ) gene product, synphilin-1, is implicated in food intake and fat deposition in mammals [57-59] and in hyperphagia, first characterized in transgenic mice overexpressing this gene predominantly in neurons, which unexpectedly manifested obesity resulting from increased food intake, and in the absence of PD-like symptoms [60].