1 Relationship and correlation analysis between HUA and various metabolic indicators
1.1 Comparison of metabolic index levels between groups
The results showed that in the biochemical indexes of the hyperuricemia group and non-hyperuricemia group, albumin (ALB), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), Alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), potassium ion, urea, blood glucose (GLU), creatinine, BMI (Body Mass Index, BMI) The difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05). The differences in serum total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, and sodium ions were all significant. No statistical significance (P > 0.05).
The levels of ALB, TG, ALT, AST, potassium ion, urea, GLU, creatinine, and BMI in the HUA group were higher than those in the NUA group, and the HDL levels were lower than those in the NUA group (P < 0.05, Table 1).
Table 1
Comparison of biochemical indexes between the two groups (n = 3468)
Variables
|
HUA (P25, P75)
|
NUA (P25, P75)
|
Z
|
P
|
Total, n
|
1009
|
2459
|
|
|
ALB, g/L
|
44.15(42.50,45.70)
|
43.90(42.20,45.30)
|
-2.741
|
0.006
|
TC, mmol/L
|
5.43(4.65,6.23)
|
5.53(4.81,6.33)
|
-1.886
|
0.059
|
TG, mmol/L
|
1.51(1.07,2.26)
|
1.27(0.92,1.80)
|
-9.438
|
0.000
|
LDL, mmol/L
|
2.92(2.35,3.55)
|
2.93(2.38,3.50)
|
-0.728
|
0.467
|
HDL, mmol/L
|
1.36(1.18,1.57)
|
1.51(1.30,1.75)
|
-11.321
|
0.000
|
ALT, U/L
|
17.00(13.00,23.00)
|
15.00(12.00,20.00)
|
-6.332
|
0.000
|
AST, U/L
|
25.00(21.00,30.00)
|
24.00(21.00,28.00)
|
-4.735
|
0.000
|
Total bilirubin, µmol/L
|
10.00(8.00,12.75)
|
10.20(8.10,12.80)
|
-0.586
|
0.558
|
Direct bilirubin, µmol/L
|
3.00(2.30,4.10)
|
3.00(2.30,4.00)
|
-1.412
|
0.158
|
K, mmol/L
|
4.30(4.06,4.56)
|
4.25(4.01,4.55)
|
-3.812
|
0.000
|
Na, mmol/L
|
141.00(139.70,142.20)
|
141.10(139.80,142.30)
|
-1.843
|
0.065
|
Urea, mmol/L
|
6.80(5.70,8.07)
|
6.12(5.14,7.26)
|
-11.615
|
0.000
|
GLU, mmol/L
|
5.80(5.20,6.80)
|
5.60(5.00,6.70)
|
-4.542
|
0.000
|
Creatinine, µmol/L
|
75.00(65.00,87.00)
|
60.00(52.00,70.00)
|
-23.940
|
0.000
|
BMI
|
24.61(22.33,27.12)
|
23.42(21.30,25.92)
|
-8.494
|
0.000
|
P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significance.
1.2 Correlation analysis between HUA and various metabolic indicators
The level of uric acid was positively correlated with ALB, TG, LDL, AST, ALT, potassium ion, GLU, urea, creatinine, and BMI, and negatively correlated with the level of HDL (P < 0.05, Table 2).
Table 2
Correlation Analysis between uric acid level and various biochemical indexes (n = 3468)
Variables
|
ALB
|
TG
|
LDL
|
HDL
|
AST
|
ALT
|
K
|
GLU
|
Urea
|
Creatinine
|
BMI
|
Spearman's rho
|
0.077
|
0.236
|
0.050
|
-0.251
|
0.107
|
0.159
|
0.092
|
0.076
|
0.232
|
0.508
|
0.222
|
P
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
<0.01
|
P< 0.05 was considered as a significant difference.
2. The relationship between HUA and complications
The results showed that between the HUA group and the NUA group, the differences in the prevalence of hypertension and fatty liver were statistically significant (P < 0.05), and the differences in diabetes, coronary heart disease, and abnormal electrocardiogram were not statistically significant (P > 0.05).
The prevalence of hypertension and fatty liver in the HUA group was higher than those in the NUA group (P < 0.05, Table 3).
Table 3
Comparison of complications between the two groups (n = 3468)
Variables
|
HUA (n = 1009)
|
NUA (n = 2459)
|
X2
|
P
|
Hypertension, n(%)
|
603(59.8)
|
1195(48.6)
|
36.798
|
0.000
|
Diabetes, n(%)
|
190(18.8)
|
454(18.5)
|
0.085
|
0.771
|
Coronary heart disease, n(%)
|
15(1.49)
|
33(1.34)
|
0.116
|
0.733
|
Fatty liver, n(%)
|
315(31.2)
|
502(20.4)
|
47.050
|
0.000
|
abnormal electrocardiogram, n(%)
|
640(63.4)
|
1534(62.4)
|
0.308
|
0.579
|
P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significance.
3 Genetic Testing Results
Screening patients with gout attacks from the physical examination population, investigating the incidence of the family, selecting 2 families with ≥ 3 immediate family members who have gout attacks, excluding the history of diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic diseases, excluding the history of smoking and drinking, and no recent use of special drugs. Family 1: The patient, father, and grandfather all suffer from gout, and the patient's mother is verified; Family 2: The patient, sister, and father all suffer from gout, and the patient's mother is verified. The clinical whole-exome sequencing (including mitochondria) detection of the family was carried out, and the results were as follows: no mutation of SLC2A9 and ABCG2 gene was found in the two tested families, and one case of mutation of the SLC4A1 gene, ABCB4 gene, and LRBA gene was detected.
3.1 SLC4A1
After detection and analysis, a heterozygous missense variant was detected in the coding region of the SLC4A1 gene in a subject in family 1. The mother's test result was heterozygous, and the father's test result showed no mutation.
Abnormal SLC4A1 gene can lead to autosomal dominant distal renal tubular acidosis and other diseases. The clinical features of distal renal tubular acidosis include nephrolithiasis, nephrocalcification, primary distal renal tubular acidosis, hypercalciuria, etc. [12–14], but there is no literature report that this variant is directly related to HUA. The population frequency of this variant is relatively high, and the frequency of East Asian populations with this variant included in the gnomAD general population database is 0.000 80. Only 2 computational methods are predicting that this variant could have deleterious effects on a gene or gene product. Distal renal tubular acidosis was partially associated with the clinical presentation of subjects in family 1.
3.2 ABCB4
After detection and analysis, a heterozygous nonsense variant was detected in the coding region of the ABCB4 gene in a subject in family 1. The mother's test result was heterozygous, and the father's test result showed no mutation.
Abnormal ABCB4 gene can lead to autosomal dominant cholecystopathy type 1 and other diseases, and its clinical features include gallstones, cholestasis, liver fibrosis, pancreatitis, cholangitis, jaundice, etc. High-risk factors for the disease include age, females, obesity (especially central obesity), blood lipids, type 2 diabetes, etc. [15–17]. This variant is a rare variant, which is not included in the gnomAD population database and the local population database. It has been reported in the literature that the liver tissue of a proband with familial progressive intrahepatic cholestasis carrying a homozygous nonsense variant (c.2869C > T:p.R957X) was analyzed and found to have reduced or absent levels of RNA and ABCB4 protein [18]; another literature reported that a heterozygous frameshift variant (c.1399_1400ins10:p.Tyr467fs) and a heterozygous nonsense variant (c.3136C > T:p.R1046*) were found in young adults with gallstones, respectively, and speculated that the two variants may be harmful to the function of the ABCB4 protein [18]; the variant detected in this subject is a nonsense variant, which may lead to the loss of protein function. Cholecystopathy is not closely related to the clinical manifestations of the subjects but is a pathogenic variant consistent with a pattern of inheritance.
3.3 LRBA gene
After detection and analysis, a heterozygous nonsense variant was found in the LRBA gene of a subject in family 2, the mother's test result was heterozygous, and the father's test result was not found to be a variant.
Abnormalities in the LRBA gene can cause autosomal recessive immunodeficiency common variant 8 with autoimmunity. The clinical features of the disease include recurrent infections starting in early childhood, especially respiratory infections, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, inflammatory bowel disease, etc. [19–21]. Other clinical features include growth retardation, recurrent sinusitis, recurrent otitis media, recurrent conjunctivitis, bronchiectasis, pneumonia, chronic lung disease, interstitial pneumonia, asthma, autoimmune enteropathy, diarrhea, atrophic Gastritis, colitis, enteritis, arthritis, hypothyroidism, pancytopenia, granuloma, autoimmune deficiency or primary immunodeficiency, etc. [22–25]This variant has not yet been reported in the literature, and the frequency of this variant in the East Asian general population in the gnomAD database is 0.000294. According to ACMG guidelines, this variant is a variant of unknown clinical significance. Only one heterozygous variant was detected in one subject, which was inconsistent with the inheritance pattern of the disease, and type 8, a common variant of immunodeficiency, was only partially associated with the clinical manifestations of the subject.