Expression of DNA methyltransferase mRNA in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with primary gout

Objective To study the expression level and determine the role of DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1), DNA methyltransferase 3A (DNMT3A) and DNA methyltransferase3B (DNMT3B) mRNA in patients with primary gout. Methods DNMT1, DNMT3A, DNMT3B gene mRNA were measured using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in the peripheral blood monocytes (PBMCs). The expression of DNMT1, DNMT3A, DNMT3B gene mRNA in PBMCs were compared among patients with acute gout (AG, n=50), intermediate gout (IG, n=47) and healthy controls (n=44). All features were analyzed by Statistical Pack-age forme Soci-Science (SPSS) 19.0 statistical software, Wilcoxon rank sum test, One-Way analysis of variance was used for statistical analysis. Results The expression of DNMT1 mRNA in the group of AG, IG [0.000 8(0.000 4, 0.005 1)], [0.001 1(0.000 4, 0.008 4)] was significantly lower than that in the healthy controls group [0.001 7 (0.001 0, 0.008 3), F=3.696, P 0.05), The Expression of DNMT3A mRNA in the group of AG, IG[0.005 8 (0.001 5, 0.017 9), 0.012 8(0.003 2, 0.043 5)] were significantly lower than that in the healthy controls group [0.015 1(0.007 6, 0.072 7), F=10.145, P 0.05). The expression level of DNMT1 was correlated with Crea(r=0.394, P<0.05), The expression level of DNMT3A was correlated with MCV(r=0.588, P<0.05). Conclusion The abnormal expression of the DNMT1, DNMT3A and DNMT3B mRNA in primary gout patients suggest that they are involved in the pathogenesis of gouty genetic and inflammatory responses. Key words: Gout; DNA methyltransferase 1; DNA methyltransferase 3A; DNA methyltransferase 3B