Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders in women. It is characterized by chronic anovulation, hyperandrogenism, obesity and a predisposition to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Since obesity plays an important role in the etiology of PCOS, we sought to determine if variants in the perilipin gene (PLIN), a gene previously implicated in the development of obesity, were also associated with PCOS. We typed six single nucleotide polymorphisms (haplotype tagging and/or previously associated with obesity or related metabolic traits) in PLIN in 305 unrelated non-Hispanic white women (185 with PCOS and 120 without PCOS). None of the variants was associated with PCOS (P<0.05). However, the variant rs1052700*A was associated with increased risk for glucose intolerance (impaired glucose tolerance or T2DM) in both non-PCOS (OR=1.75 [1.02-3.01], P=0.044) and PCOS subjects (OR=1.67 [1.08-2.59], P=0.022). It was also associated with increased LDL (P=0.007) and total cholesterol levels (P=0.042). These results suggest that genetic variation in PLIN may affect glucose and lipid metabolism in women both with and without PCOS.