Examining the Association of Rare Allelic Variants in Urate Transporters SLC22A11 , SLC22A13 , and SLC17A1 with Hyperuricemia and Gout.

Genetic variations in urate transporters play a significant role in determining human urate levels and have been implicated in developing hyperuricemia or gout. Polymorphism in the key urate transporters, such as ABCG2, URAT1, or GLUT9 was well-documented in the literature. Therefore in this study, our objective was to determine the frequency and effect of rare nonsynonymous allelic variants of SLC22A11 , SLC22A13 , and SLC17A1 on urate transport. In a cohort of 150 Czech patients with primary hyperuricemia and gout, we examined all coding regions and exon-intron boundaries of SLC22A11 , SLC22A13 , and SLC17A1 using PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing. For comparison, we used a control group consisting of 115 normouricemic subjects. To examine the effects of the rare allelic nonsynonymous variants on the expression, intracellular processing, and urate transporter protein function, we performed a functional characterization using the HEK293A cell line, immunoblotting, fluorescent microscopy, and site directed mutagenesis for preparing variants in vitro . Variants p.V202M (rs201209258), p.R343L (rs75933978), and p.P519L (rs144573306) were identified in the SLC22A11 gene (OAT4 transporter); variants p.R16H (rs72542450), and p.R102H (rs113229654) in the SLC22A13 gene (OAT10 transporter); and the p.W75C variant in the SLC17A1 gene (NPT1 transporter). All variants minimally affected protein levels and cytoplasmic/plasma membrane localization. The functional in vitro assay revealed that contrary to the native proteins, variants p.P519L in OAT4 ( p ≤ 0.05), p.R16H in OAT10 ( p ≤ 0.05), and p.W75C in the NPT1 transporter ( p ≤ 0.01) significantly limited urate transport activity. Our findings contribute to a better understanding of (1) the risk of urate transporter-related hyperuricemia/gout and (2) uric acid handling in the kidneys.