STAT4 confers risk for rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus in Mexican patients

• The STAT4 rs7574865G/T polymorphism is associated with RA and SLE.
• Gender stratified showed an association between the STAT4 rs7574865G/T polymorphism and RA and SLE in women.
• STAT4 is a risk factor for the development RA and SLE in Mexican patients.

STAT4 has been consistently associated with several autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The aim of this study was to determine whether the STAT4 rs7574865G/T polymorphism confers susceptibility for RA and SLE in a sample of Mexican patients. This study included 869 individuals: 415 patients with RA, 128 patients with SLE, and 326 controls. Genotyping using TaqMan probes showed an association between the STAT4 rs7574865G/T polymorphism and RA (GG vs. TT: OR 1.99, p = 0.0009; G vs. T: OR 1.42, p = 0.0009) and SLE (GG vs. TT: OR 2.98, 0.0003; G vs. T: OR 1.74, p = 0.0002). Gender stratification showed an association with RA (GG vs. TT: OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.3–3.1, p = 0.002; G vs. T: OR 1.42, 95% CI 1.1–1.8, p = 0.002) and SLE (GG vs. TT: OR 3.3, 95% CI 1.7–6.2, p = 0.0002; G vs. T: OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.3–2.4, p = 0.0002) in women. Thus, the STAT4 rs7574865G/T polymorphism confers risk for RA and SLE in the Mexican population.