Common dysfunctional variants of ABCG2 have stronger impact on hyperuricemia progression than typical environmental risk factors

Abstract

Gout/hyperuricemia is a common multifactorial disease having typical environmental risks. Recently, common dysfunctional variants of ABCG2, a urate exporter gene also known as BCRP, are revealed to be a major cause of gout/hyperuricemia. Here, we compared the influence of ABCG2 dysfunction on serum uric acid (SUA) levels with other typical risk factors in a cohort of 5,005 Japanese participants. ABCG2 dysfunction was observed in 53.3% of the population investigated, and its population-attributable risk percent (PAR%) for hyperuricemia was 29.2%, much higher than those of the other typical environmental risks, i.e. overweight/obesity (BMI 25.0; PAR% = 18.7%), heavy drinking (>196 g/week (male) or >98 g/week (female) of pure alcohol; PAR% = 15.4%), and aging (60 years old; PAR% = 5.74%). SUA significantly increased as the ABCG2 function decreased (P = 5.99 × 10 19). A regression analysis revealed that ABCG2 dysfunction had a stronger effect than other factors; a 25% decrease in ABCG2 function was equivalent to an increase of BMI by 1.97-point or 552.1 g/week alcohol intake as pure ethanol in terms of ability to increase SUA. Therefore, ABCG2 dysfunction originating from common genetic variants has a much stronger impact on the progression of hyperuricemia than other familiar risks. Our study provides a better understanding of common genetic factors for common diseases. © 2014 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.