Complex segregation analysis of body height, weight and BMI in pedigree data from Middle Dalmatia, Croatia.

It has recently been reported that the mode of inheritance of body height, weight and BMI in five ethnically and geographically different populations can be described in terms of a major gene (MG) model. Here, using the pedigree sample from the island populations of Middle Dalmatia, Croatia (1,312 observed individuals in 462 pedigrees), the evidence is presented that supports the above findings. By applying the usual transmission probability tests, the hypothesis has been accepted that a significant part of the variation of each one of those three basic morphological traits can be attributed to the effect of a putative large-effect gene. The effect of a putative MG is responsible for 39-50% of age and sex adjusted trait's variation and for 34-48% of the total (non age-adjusted) variation of height, weight and BMI.