The association between STAT4 SNP (rs7574865) and SLE incidence

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the association of STAT4 gene polymorphism (rs7574865) with the incidence of SLE. Materials and methods. One hundred and sixty participants (80 patients with SLE and 80 healthy individuals) were included in the study. Gene analysis was performed by ARMS-PCR in peripheral blood samples. Results. Fifty-seven percent (n = 45) of patients with SLE had SLEDAI above 6 and had active disease. In the SLE group, the frequency of G and T alleles were 81% and 19%, respectively. Moreover, 72.50% (n = 58) of patients carried the GG genotype, 17.5% (n =14) had the GT genotype, and 10.1% (n = 8) carried the TT genotype. There was no significant difference between allele frequency and genotypic distribution for rs7574865 polymorphism (p > 0.05) between SLE and control groups. Significant differences were observed between the distribution of genotypes and clinical manifestations including leukopenia (p = 0.045), pulmonary (p = 0.011), and ophthalmic (p = 0.049) problems. The T allele with an odd ratio of 1.47 and confidence interval of 0.80-2.6 could increase the risk of SLE; however, it was not statistically significant (p = 0.208).