Assessing Genetic Risk for Physical Activity and Its Interaction with Diet in Predicting Activity Levels and Weight Loss in the iMPROVE Study
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Design and Participants
2.2. Assessment of Dietary Intake and PA Habits
2.3. Genetic Data and Polygenic Risk Scores (PRSs)
2.4. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Descriptive Statistics
3.2. Predictive Utility of PRS for PA and Weight-Related Outcomes
3.3. Differences in Weight Loss per PRS Group
3.4. PRS-Diet Effects on PA and Weight Change
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Appendix A. Differences in PA per Diet Group
References
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| Variable | Time | iMPROVE Cohort | Median (IQR) | High-Carb Group | Median (IQR) | High-Protein Group | Median (IQR) | p * |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PA (MET-mins/week) | Baseline | 181 | 1280 (1623) | 86 | 1285 (1545) | 95 | 1280 (1683) | 0.911 |
| Month 1 | 126 | 1100.5 (1524) | 58 | 1224 (1762) | 68 | 1041 (1491) | 0.224 | |
| p ** | 0.336 | 0.488 | 0.046 | |||||
| Month 2 | 91 | 1187 (1904) | 42 | 1445 (1873) | 49 | 945 (2261) | 0.325 | |
| p ** | 0.564 | 0.550 | 0.861 | |||||
| Month 3 | 79 | 1638 (2175) | 36 | 1737 (1817) | 43 | 1638 (2518) | 0.910 | |
| p ** | 0.411 | 0.854 | 0.188 | |||||
| p *** | 0.271 | 0.701 | 0.264 | |||||
| Weight (kg) | Baseline | 202 | 87 (26) | 94 | 83.50 (26) | 108 | 88.50 (25) | 0.014 |
| Month 1 | 118 | 84 (25) | 56 | 81.50 (21) | 62 | 86 (26) | 0.173 | |
| p ** | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||||
| Month 2 | 89 | 82 (25) | 42 | 80 (20) | 47 | 86 (25) | 0.149 | |
| p ** | <0.001 | 0.047 | 0.006 | |||||
| Month 3 | 84 | 83 (25) | 36 | 79 (25) | 48 | 84.5 (20.5) | 0.178 | |
| p ** | 0.819 | 0.478 | 0.843 | |||||
| p *** | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||||
| BMI (kg/m2) | Baseline | 202 | 31.35 (6.9) | 94 | 30.5 (6.9) | 108 | 32.3 (7.8) | 0.920 |
| Month 1 | 118 | 30.14 (6.08) | 56 | 29.58 (6.34) | 62 | 31.18 (6.09) | 0.249 | |
| p ** | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | |||||
| Month 2 | 89 | 29.71 (6.12) | 42 | 29.84 (5.43) | 47 | 29.71 (7.02) | 0.421 | |
| p ** | <0.001 | 0.088 | 0.006 | |||||
| Month 3 | 84 | 29.43 (6.50) | 36 | 29.21 (6.83) | 48 | 29.47 (6.32) | 0.333 | |
| p ** | 0.867 | 0.458 | 0.610 | |||||
| p *** | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| PRS | Outcome Type | Imputation Panel | Timepoint | Significant Interactions | Model Fit (R2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGS002255 | MET-mins/week | HRC | Month 1 |
| 0.092 |
| PGS002254 | Log Weight Loss post-intervention | HRC | Post-intervention |
| 0.06 |
| PGS001923 | MET-mins/week | HRC | Baseline |
| 0.091 |
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Kafyra, M.; Symianakis, P.; Kalafati, I.P.; Moulos, P.; Dedoussis, G.V. Assessing Genetic Risk for Physical Activity and Its Interaction with Diet in Predicting Activity Levels and Weight Loss in the iMPROVE Study. Genes 2026, 17, 155. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes17020155
Kafyra M, Symianakis P, Kalafati IP, Moulos P, Dedoussis GV. Assessing Genetic Risk for Physical Activity and Its Interaction with Diet in Predicting Activity Levels and Weight Loss in the iMPROVE Study. Genes. 2026; 17(2):155. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes17020155
Chicago/Turabian StyleKafyra, Maria, Panagiotis Symianakis, Ioanna Panagiota Kalafati, Panagiotis Moulos, and George V. Dedoussis. 2026. "Assessing Genetic Risk for Physical Activity and Its Interaction with Diet in Predicting Activity Levels and Weight Loss in the iMPROVE Study" Genes 17, no. 2: 155. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes17020155
APA StyleKafyra, M., Symianakis, P., Kalafati, I. P., Moulos, P., & Dedoussis, G. V. (2026). Assessing Genetic Risk for Physical Activity and Its Interaction with Diet in Predicting Activity Levels and Weight Loss in the iMPROVE Study. Genes, 17(2), 155. https://doi.org/10.3390/genes17020155

