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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Growth of visceral fat, subcutaneous abdominal fat, and total body fat in children.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the patterns of growth of visceral fat, subcutaneous abdominal fat, and total body fat over a 3- to 5-year period in white and African American children. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Children (mean age: 8.1 +/- 1.6 years at baseline) were recruited from Birmingham, Alabama, and those with three or more repeated annual measurements were included in the analysis (N = 138 children and 601 observations). Abdominal adipose tissue (visceral and subcutaneous) was measured using computed tomography. Total body fat and lean tissue mass were measured by DXA. Random growth curve modeling was performed to estimate growth rates of the different body fat compartments. RESULTS: Visceral fat and total body fat both exhibited significant growth effects before and after adjusting for subcutaneous abdominal fat and lean tissue mass, respectively, and for gender, race, and baseline age (5.2 +/- 2.2 cm(2)/yr and 1.9 +/- 0.8 kg/yr, respectively). After adjusting for total body fat, the growth of subcutaneous abdominal fat was not significant. Whites showed a higher visceral fat growth than did African Americans (difference: 1.9 +/- 0.8 cm(2)/yr), but there was no ethnic difference for growth of subcutaneous abdominal fat or total body fat. There were no gender differences found for any of the growth rates. DISCUSSION: Growth of visceral fat remained significant after adjusting for growth of subcutaneous abdominal fat, implying that the acquisition of the two abdominal fat compartments may involve different physiologic mechanisms. In contrast, growth of subcutaneous abdominal fat was explained by growth in total body fat, suggesting that subcutaneous fat may not be preferentially deposited in the abdominal area during this phase of growth. Finally, significantly higher growth of visceral fat in white compared with African American children is consistent with cross-sectional findings.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2003

Interactions among the beta2- and beta3- adrenergic receptor genes and total body fat and abdominal fat level in the HERITAGE Family Study.

OBJECTIVE AND SUBJECTS: Interactions between markers in the beta2- and beta3-adrenergic receptor (ADR) genes and total body fat and computerized tomography-measured abdominal fat phenotypes were studied in the HERITAGE Family Study cohort of Black (n=205; 81 males and 124 females) and White (n=415; 198 males and 217 females) subjects before and after an endurance training program. RESULTS: In Black subjects, beta2- and beta3-ADR gene variants showed evidence of interactions on changes in total body fat mass and abdominal fat area (P<0.005 and =0.010, respectively). Black subjects who were carriers of both beta2-ADR Arg16 and beta3-ADR Arg64 alleles had a greater decrease in total fat mass as well as abdominal total and subcutaneous, but not visceral fat areas in response to endurance training than subjects with other genotype combinations (P from 0.011 to 0.047). After correction for multiple tests, the findings remained essentially unchanged for total body fat mass and abdominal fat area, but became nonsignificant for subcutaneous fat area. The changes in abdominal fat correlated positively with the changes in fat mass (P<0.0001). The interactions between beta2 and beta3-ADR gene markers accounted for a maximum of 3% of the variances in the response of total fat mass and abdominal fat area to endurance training in Black subjects but it was not significant in White subjects. CONCLUSION: Interactions between sequence variants in the beta2-beta3-ADR gene contributed to the changes in fat mass and abdominal adiposity in response to endurance training in Black subjects.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2002

Substituting dietary saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat changes abdominal fat distribution and improves insulin sensitivity.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: British dietary recommendations are to decrease total fat intake to less than 30 % of daily energy intake and saturated fat to less than 10 %. In practice, it is difficult for people to make these changes. It may be easier to encourage people to switch from a diet rich in saturated fatty acids to one rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids. METHODS: A total of 17 subjects - six people with Type II (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus, six non-obese and five obese people without diabetes - were randomised to spend two 5-week periods on a diet rich in saturated or in polyunsaturated fatty acids, in a crossover design. At the start of the study and after each dietary period, we assessed abdominal fat distribution using magnetic resonance imaging, insulin sensitivity using hyperinsulinaemic-euglycaemic clamps and fasting lipid parameters. RESULTS: Dietary compliance, assessed by weekly 3-day dietary records and measurement of biochemical markers, was good. Energy and fat intake appeared to be reduced on the diet rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids although body weights did not change. Insulin sensitivity and plasma low density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations improved with the diet rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids compared with the diet rich in saturated fatty acids. There was also a decrease in abdominal subcutaneous fat area. CONCLUSION/INTERPRETATION: If this result is confirmed in longer-term studies, this dietary manipulation would be more readily achieved by the general population than the current recommendations and could result in considerable improvement in insulin sensitivity, reducing the risk of developing Type II diabetes.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2003

Relationships of resting energy expenditure with body fat distribution and abdominal fatness in Japanese population.

Body fat distribution and abdominal fatness are indicators of risks for coronary heart disease. However, the relationships between resting energy expenditure (REE) and the body fat distribution or the abdominal fatness are unclear. We examined the relationships of REE with whole-body fat distribution (waist, hip and waist-to-hip ratio: WHR) and abdominal fatness (intra-abdominal fat: IF and subcutaneous fat: SF) after adjustment for body composition. 451 men and 471 women were subdivided into two groups, 40-59 years: middle-aged group and 60-79 years: elderly group. REE was measured by an indirect calorimetry system. Percentage of fat mass (%FM), fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass (FFM) were assessed by a dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry method. The IF area (IFA) and SF area (SFA) at the level of the umbilicus were measured using computed tomography. Circumference of waist and hip were measured in a standing position. The WHR, waist circumference and SFA did not significantly (p>0.05) associate with the REE after adjusting for FM, FFM and age in any of the groups. The adjusted REE was significantly and inversely correlated with hip (r=-0.159, p<0.05) and IFA (r=-0.131, p<0.05) in the elderly men. These results suggest that lower REE may contribute to greater hip and IFA rather than WHR and waist in elderly men.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2004

Can you be large and not obese? The distinction between body weight, body fat, and abdominal fat in occupational standards.

Weight control is an important early intervention in diabetes, but the nature of the association between weight and disordered metabolism has been confused because fat mass and its distribution are only partly associated with increasing body size. Weight, fat, and regional fat placement, specifically in the abdominal site, may each have distinctly different associations with diabetes risk. Abdominal circumference may be the common marker of poor fitness habits and of increased risk for metabolic diseases such as diabetes. This is an important question for public health policy as well as for occupational standards such as those of the military, which are intended to promote fitness for military missions and include strength and aerobic capacity, as well as military appearance considerations. U.S. soldiers are heavier than ever before, reflecting both increased muscle and fat components. They also have better health care than ever before and are required to exercise regularly, and even the oldest soldiers are required to remain below body fat limits that are more stringent than the current median values of the U.S. population over age 40. The body fat standards assessed by circumference-based equations are 20-26% and 30-36%, for various age groups of men and women, respectively, and the upper limits align with threshold values of waist circumference recommended in national health goals. The basis and effects of the Army standards are presented in this paper. U.S. Army body fat standards may offer practical and reasonable health guidelines suitable for all active Americans that might help stem the increasing prevalence of obesity that is predicted to increase the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2004

Acquired obesity is associated with increased liver fat, intra-abdominal fat, and insulin resistance in young adult monozygotic twins.

We determined whether acquired obesity is associated with increases in liver or intra-abdominal fat or impaired insulin sensitivity by studying monozygotic (MZ) twin pairs discordant and concordant for obesity. We studied nineteen 24- to 27-yr-old MZ twin pairs, with intrapair differences in body weight ranging from 0.1 to 24.7 kg [body mass index (BMI) range 20.0-33.9 kg/m2], identified from a population-based FinnTwin16 sample. Fat distribution was determined by magnetic resonance imaging, percent body fat by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, liver fat by proton spectroscopy, insulin sensitivity by measuring the fasting insulin concentration, and whole body insulin sensitivity by the euglycemic insulin clamp technique. Intrapair differences in BMI were significantly correlated with those in intra-abdominal fat (r = 0.82, P < 0.001) and liver fat (r = 0.57, P = 0.010). Intrapair differences in fasting insulin correlated with those in subcutaneous abdominal (r = 0.60, P = 0.008), intra-abdominal (r = 0.75, P = 0.0001) and liver (r = 0.49, P = 0.048) fat. Intrapair differences in whole body insulin sensitivity correlated with those in subcutaneous abdominal (r = -0.72, P = 0.001) and intra-abdominal (r = -0.55, P = 0.015) but not liver (r = -0.20, P = 0.20) fat. We conclude that acquired obesity is associated with increases in intra-abdominal and liver fat and insulin resistance, independent of genetic factors.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed1997

Serum leptin concentration is associated with total body fat mass, but not abdominal fat distribution.

OBJECTIVE: The obese (ob) gene encodes leptin which inhibits appetite and stimulates thermogenesis. Serum leptin concentrations are determined by total body fat mass, but the influence of visceral fat accumulation and other metabolic factors have been clinically determined. METHODS: We determined the correlations between serum leptin concentrations and the total body fat mass, abdominal fat mass, abdominal fat distribution (estimated by ultrasound), and circulating metabolic factors in 104 Japanese healthy subjects (11 men and 93 women). In addition, the effect of food restriction (30 kcal/kg desired body weight/day) for four weeks on serum leptin concentrations were also examined in 30 women. RESULTS: There was a significant correlation between serum concentrations and total body fat mass (r = 0.708, P < 0.0001), the percentage of body fat (r = 0.561, P < 0.001), and the body mass index (BMI, r = 0.630, P < 0.001). Serum leptin concentrations were correlated with abdominal wall preperitoneal and subcutaneous fat pad thickness, but not the abdominal wall fat index (AFI). Serum leptin concentrations were also correlated with serum immunoreactive insulin (IRI), but not glucose, or free fatty acid (FFA) concentrations. The weight loss after food restriction for four weeks significantly (P = 0.016) reduced the serum leptin concentrations with a significant reduction of body fat mass, serum glucose, IRI and FFA concentrations. However, there was no significant correlation of the percentage change in serum leptin concentrations to that in body fat mass after food restriction. CONCLUSION: Serum leptin concentrations are well correlated with total body fat mass in healthy subjects. Differences in abdominal fat distribution do not appear to be related to a difference in the in vivo leptin production from adipose tissue.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1998

The relationship between parental yolk cholesterol and yolk fat concentration to abdominal fat content and feed conversion ratio of their respective offspring.

The correlation of yolk cholesterol and yolk fat concentrations of egg from the pedigreed Athens-Canadian Randombred control population with the percentage of abdominal fat (AF) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) of their progeny were studied. The average yolk cholesterol, yolk fat, and AF were 20.3 mg/g yolk, 244 mg/g yolk, and 1.64%, respectively. The phenotypic correlation of both yolk cholesterol and yolk fat content of eggs from the parental population with AF or FCR of their progeny were low and nonsignificant.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1987

Use of a fat probe to assess variation in abdominal fat in broilers.

Four trials were conducted to compare the fat probe measure of abdominal fat with that of actual abdominal fat weights and percentage abdominal fat. Various ages, diets, and genetic groups were used to provide experimental chickens with a wide range in body weights and abdominal fat percentages. Mean values obtained by two operators using the probe on the same bird were similar (correlations of .70 to .79). Considering all comparisons, the arithmetic mean of the correlations between fat probe values and percentage abdominal fat was .24; values ranged from .01 to .44. In five comparisons of groups differing significantly in percentage abdominal fat, there were no significant differences in probe values, and correlations between fat and probe values were low. In three other comparisons of groups differing significantly in percentage abdominal fat, differences between probe values were significant and correlations between fat and probe values were moderate. In the comparison groups in which there was an association between probe and fat values, the magnitude of the differences in fat values was about four times as great as that of differences in probe values and the correlations were moderate (.28 to .44). In the comparisons in which higher abdominal fat. In comparisons where higher probe values were not associated with higher abdominal fat, higher body weights were not associated with higher percentage fat.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1988

Genetic parameters of plasma very low density lipoproteins, abdominal fat lipase, and protein, fatness, and growth traits of broiler chickens.

Genetic parameters of physiological, growth, and fatness traits were investigated in one control and two selected dam strains of broiler chickens. Feed consumption and efficiency were measured between 28 and 42 days of age but were adjusted to estimate values of population average body weights at these ages. Birds were bled at 45 days of age for assay of plasma very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) and killed at 47 days of age for carcass and fat measurements. Abdominal fat was assayed for lipase activity expressed per milligram of protein (LIP/mgP) or per gram of fat (LIP/gF) and protein content of the enzyme preparation expressed as microgram protein/mL (P/mLEPrep). Absolute values of partial correlations corrected for sex and strain were low between production and physiological traits and between fatness and LIP/mgP but were moderate at .3 between fatness and plasma VLDL, LIP/gF, and P/mLEPrep. Heritabilities were moderate to high (greater than or equal to .32) for growth and fatness traits, moderate (.25) for plasma VLDL, and low (less than or equal to .16) for P/LEPrep, LIP/mgP, and LIP/gF. Genetic correlations involving plasma VLDL were as follows: .49 with body weight at 42 days, -.74 with feed consumption, .64 with feed efficiency, .24 with carcass weight at 47 days, 1.07 with abdominal fat weight, and .97 with abdominal fat percentage. Similarly, absolute values of genetic correlations involving P/mLEPrep tended to be as high or higher but genetic correlations involving LIP/mgP and LIP/gF tended to be lower than those involving plasma VLDL.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed2004

Facial fat and its relationship to abdominal fat: a marker for insulin resistance?

Reports of relationships between measures of insulin sensitivity and measures of body fat and fat distribution suggest that abdominal fat accumulation is a predictor of insulin resistance. It has been previously suggested that facial fat (primarily in the cheeks and neck) is strongly associated with visceral abdominal fat accumulation. The facial fat is a rich vascular region, that seems to be metabolically active and resembles abdominal white adipose tissue. We, therefore, hypothesize that facial fat could be a good predictor of insulin resistance. Whether facial fat can be used as an accurate marker for insulin resistance remains to be determined.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1998

Genes versus environment. The relationship between dietary fat and total and central abdominal fat.

OBJECTIVE: The influence of diet on body fat has not been quantified independently of genetic influences, although both are held to contribute to regulation of body fat stores. This study examined 1) the relationship between recent diet and total body and central abdominal fat in middle-aged female twins independent of genetic and important environmental factors and 2) evidence of interaction between diet and genetic predisposition. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Measurements in 436 healthy female twins (aged 58 +/- 10 years) included dietary intake by food frequency questionnaire (validated against a 7-day food diary, n = 162), BMI, total body and central abdominal fat by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and environmental covariates (smoking habit, hormone replacement, and physical activity) by standardized questionnaire. Dietary energy underreporters were excluded. RESULTS: Intake of dietary fat (total and subtype) and carbohydrates was not related to BMI or to total or central fat, confirmed in quintile analysis. With genetic and environmental factors controlled in 90 monozygotic pairs, differences in the intake of energy, fat, or protein were not related to intrapair differences in total and central body fat. However, a minor inverse relationship between carbohydrate intake and total adiposity was confirmed (r = -0.25, P = 0.02). In paired analyses, the twin with the higher intake of total sugars had significantly lower total body and central abdominal adiposity. There was no evidence of a gene-environment interaction between intake of fat or carbohydrates contributing to greater body fat mass in subjects genetically predisposed to obesity. CONCLUSIONS: Using validated dietary measures and direct measures of body fat and excluding underreporters, no relationship between dietary fat and body fat was found in middle-aged women, particularly after controlling for genetic and some environmental factors. The role of dietary factors in determining total body and central abdominal fat appears to have been overestimated in past cross-sectional studies.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2005

Comparison of CT and dual-energy DEXA using a modified trunk compartment in the measurement of abdominal fat.

The quantification of abdominal fat is a marker of health risk. While dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) is easily applied, it measures overall fat, although abdominal fat may be a better indicator of health risk from obesity. We have evaluated whether a subcomponent of DEXA measurements correlates better with computed tomography (CT) for body fat than those traditionally used. Forty-seven healthy adults (22 M/25 F), aged 54.5+/-15.8 yr (mean+/-SD), with BMI of 27.1+/-4.6 kg/m2 participated in a cross-sectional study. Body fat was measured using abdominal CT and DEXA for total fat, trunk fat, and a modified trunk measurement that excludes the chest, termed "lower trunk," and compared. The coefficient of variation for DEXA measurements for trunk, lower trunk, and total body were 1.98, 3.12, and 0.85%, respectively. Mean DEXA for percentage fat ranged from 31.7% to 34.1% for trunk, lower trunk, and total body, compared to 54.2% for abdominal CT (p<0.003 for each pairwise comparison). Lower trunk, whole trunk, and total body DEXA measurements were not different. Measurement of subcomponents of fat content by DEXA is not superior to whole body measurements and remains consistently lower than measurements by CT.

Abdominal Fat↗
PubMed1999

Is abdominal fat preferentially reduced in response to exercise-induced weight loss?

PURPOSE: It is known that a preferential deposition of fat in the abdominal region is the obesity phenotype that conveys the greatest health risk. Although physical activity is commonly prescribed to reduce obesity, the influence of exercise-induced weight loss on abdominal fat is unclear. This review was undertaken to clarify whether abdominal fat is preferentially reduced consequent to weight loss induced by regular exercise. METHODS: A literature search (Medline, 1966-1998) was performed using appropriate keywords to identify studies reporting changes in both whole body and abdominal fat in response to exercise. RESULTS: At present there are no randomized controlled trails (RCT) wherein it was clear that exercise alone induced weight loss. For the four RCT within which regular exercise was not associated with weight loss, abdominal fat measured by waist circumference was unchanged. A similar trend is observed for the nonrandomized studies. Abdominal obesity as measured by waist circumference is unchanged for those studies reporting no loss in weight or fat; however, a modest reduction (approximately 3 cm) is observed in response to exercise-induced weight loss of about 3 kg. Without exception, these studies were not designed to determine whether abdominal obesity was preferentially reduced. Absent from the literature are RCT that employ imaging techniques (e.g., computerized tomography or magnetic resonance imaging) to determine whether exercise-induced weight loss is associated with reductions in either visceral or abdominal subcutaneous fat. However, the findings from four nonrandomized or controlled studies report that exercise with or without weight loss is associated with reductions in both visceral and subcutaneous fat. CONCLUSION: There is insufficient evidence to determine whether exercise-induced weight loss is associated with reductions in abdominal fat. Clearly there is a need for carefully controlled studies wherein the primary aim is to determine the influence of regular exercise on total and abdominal adiposity.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2000

[Metabolic difference between visceral fat and subcutaneous abdominal fat].

Obesity stands as a public health issue. Obesity prevalence is increasing throughout every industrialized country. Android obesity is linked with an increased cardiovascular mortality and with type 2 diabetes mellitis, thus calling for an early management of this disease. Several studies showed a significant association between an android fat distribution and an increased cortisol secretion, raising the still debated question of a causal relationship between the development of android obesity and hypercorticism. Moreover, android obese subjects exhibit reduced plasma testosterone and growth hormone levels, meaning complex hormonal abnormalities in these subjects. Current hypotheses suggest that android fat distribution depends on the association of these hormonal abnormalities. Android obese patients have supranormal free fatty acid plasma concentrations. Visceral fat tissue, through its portal drainage, could be an important source for free fatty acids that may exert complex metabolic effects: involvement in hepatic lipogenesis, increase in hepatic neoglucogenic flux, reduction in insulin metabolic clearance and involvement in peripheral insulin resistance through a competition mechanism described by Randle. Technics in vitro (isolated adipocytes) and in vivo in human (labelled fatty acid flux) showed that visceral fatty acid flux was increased in obese patients and subcutaneous adipose tissue, as opposed to common opinion, was also involved in free fatty acid pool in obese patients. Thus, visceral obesity and diabetes could be linked through an enhanced fatty acid availability from adipose tissues (visceral and subcutaneous) in otherwise genetically type 2 diabetes-prone individuals.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2001

A genome-wide scan for abdominal fat assessed by computed tomography in the Québec Family Study.

To identify chromosomal regions harboring genes influencing the propensity to store fat in the abdominal area, a genome-wide scan for abdominal fat was performed in the Quebec Family Study. Cross-sectional areas of the amount of abdominal total fat (ATF) and abdominal visceral fat (AVF) were assessed from a computed tomography scan taken at L4-L5 in 521 adult subjects. Abdominal subcutaneous fat (ASF) was obtained by computing the difference between ATF and AVF. The abdominal fat phenotypes were adjusted for age and sex effects as well as for total amount of body fat (kilogram of fat mass) measured by underwater weighing, and the adjusted phenotypes were used in linkage analyses. A total of 293 microsatellite markers spanning the 22 autosomal chromosomes were typed. The average intermarker distance was 11.9 cM. A maximum of 271 sib-pairs were available for single-point (SIBPAL) and 156 families for multipoint variance components (SEGPATH) linkage analyses. The strongest evidence of linkage was found on chromosome 12q24.3 between marker D12S2078 and ASF (logarithm of odds [LOD] = 2.88). Another marker (D12S1045) located within 2 cM of D12S2078 also provided evidence of sib-pair linkage with ASF (P = 0.019), ATF (P = 0.015), and AVF (P = 0.0007). Other regions with highly suggestive evidence (P < 0.0023 or LOD > or =1.75) of multipoint linkage and evidence (P < 0.05) of single-point linkage, all for ASF, included chromosomes 1p11.2, 4q32.1, 9q22.1, 12q22-q23, and 17q21.1. Three of these loci (1p11.2, 9q22.1, and 17q21.1) are close to genes involved in the regulation of sex steroid levels, whereas two others (4q32.1 and 17q21.1) are in the proximity of genes involved in the regulation of food intake. This first genome-wide scan for abdominal fat assessed by computed tomography indicates that there may be several loci determining the propensity to store fat in the abdominal depot and that some of these loci may influence the development of diabetes in obese subjects.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed2003

BMI inaccurately reflects total body and abdominal fat in Tongans.

It has been noted since the earliest European contact that Polynesian body shape and size differ from those of Europeans. The muscular build of Polynesians, such as Tongans, raises questions as to the accuracy of simple anthropometric indicators, validated for use in European populations, in Polynesians. Body mass index (BMI), total body fat and an abdominal fat window were measured in a sample of Tongan [28 male (M), 28 female (F)] and Australian Caucasian adults (39 M, 46 F), with standard anthropometric and densitometric methods. Tongan males (BMI, 32.8+/-4.6 kg/m(2)) were heavier than Australian males (BMI, 27.1+/-3.7 kg/m(2)); but differences in total body percent fat (28.9+/-8.3 vs. 25.9+/-8.1, p=0.15), abdominal fat (1.84+/-0.69 vs. 1.55+/-0.60 kg, p=0.07) and abdominal percent fat (30.3+/-8.6 vs. 28.5+/-8.3, p=0.40) were non-significant. Tongan females (BMI, 34.3+/-5.5 kg/m(2)) were also heavier than their Australian counterparts (BMI, 26.2+/-6.3 kg/m(2)); with the difference in total body percent fat (41.9+/-5.2 vs. 38.7+/-8.9, p=0.05) and abdominal percent fat (39.3+/-4.8 vs. 33.6+/-8.9, p=0.001) less than expected, given the difference in BMI. This study demonstrates significant body composition variations between Tongans and Caucasians.

Female↗
PubMed1988

Fat deposition in a broiler sire strain. 3. Heritability of and genetic correlations among body weight, abdominal fat, and feed conversion.

Body weight, abdominal fat, and feed conversion were measured in ad libitum-fed pedigreed chickens of four lines selected from a broiler sire strain. Lines were selected for four generations for a low amount of abdominal fat (AF), a favorable feed conversion (FC), a high body weight after restricted feeding (GR), and a high body weight after ad libitum feeding (GL). A total of 2,400 pedigreed chickens from three hatches were reared by line in groups on litter and 864 chickens were tested for individual feed conversion in individual cages. The h2 from the sire component for the four lines combined were for body weight, .27 (litter) and .22 (cages); for weight of abdominal fat, .54 (litter) and .40 (cages); for percentage abdominal fat, .53 (litter) and .45 (cages); and for feed conversion, .44 (cages). Analysis within line and sex indicated that, in the relatively fat GR and GL lines, sex-linked inheritance could be involved for abdominal fat. In the leaner AF and FC lines this was not the case. Genetic correlations (sire estimate) for the four lines combined were, between body weight and weight of abdominal fat, .58 (litter) and .55 (cages); between body weight and percentage abdominal fat, .36 (litter) and .47 (cages); between body weight and feed conversion, .16 (cages); between weight of abdominal and feed conversion, .43 (cages); and between percentage abdominal fat and feed conversion, .44 (cages). Genetic correlations did not differ significantly between sexes, but in the AF and FC lines, the genetic correlation between body weight and abdominal fat was higher (AF: .80, FC: .76) than in the GR (.14) and GL (.68) lines.

Abdomen↗