New genes linked to gout identified

Researchers have identified two genes and have confirmed the role of a third associated with increased risk of higher levels of uric acid in the blood, which can lead to gout.

Scientists from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), used data from two genome-wide association studies.

Genetic variations of nearly 7,700 participants from NHLBI's Framingham heart study and more than 4,100 participants in NWO's Rotterdam study were observed, and the researchers then replicated their findings using data from nearly 14,900 participants in NHLBI's Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study.

The results, published in The Lancet, said that combined, the three genetic variations were associated with up to a 40-fold increased risk in developing gout.

The findings also suggest that genetic testing could one day be used to identify individuals at risk for gout before symptoms develop, as well as determine who might benefit from medications to prevent the development of gout.

A spokesman for the Arthritis Research Campaign said the findings were important in the ongoing search to establish the cause of and better treatments for gout.

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