Tabriz University of Medical Sciences Journal of Research in Clinical Medicine 2717-0616 14 1 2026 01 01 Molecular Analysis of SLC22A4 Gene Polymorphisms (Rs3792876, Rs1050152) in Palindromic Rheumatism and Rheumatoid Arthritis 35472 35472 10.34172/jrcm.35472 EN Aynaz Asgharvand-Hejab https://orcid.org/0009-0004-9442-8127 Sima Shahmohammadi–Farid Azam Safary Alireza Khabbazi Mehdi Jafarpour https://orcid.org/0009-0008-3555-8908 Journal Article 10.34172/jrcm.35472 2025 07 17 2025 12 24 Palindromic rheumatism (PR) is an inflammatory rheumatic disease distinguished by episodic, self-limiting flares of arthritis or periarthritis. It may progress over time to other rheumatic diseases, particularly rheumatoid arthritis (RA). SLC22A4, located on chromosome 5, encodes an organic cation transporter (OCTN1) that mediates the transport of small molecules across cell membranes. Immune cells express OCTN1, which regulates oxidative stress, cell survival, and inflammatory signaling by transporting specific small molecules. This study analyzes the SLC22A4 gene polymorphisms in PR and RA patients compared to healthy controls (HCs). We included 27 PR patients; 40 RA patients and 40 HCs matched for age and gender. All participants were Azeri. The SLC22A4 (rs3792876 and rs1050152) polymorphisms were genotyped. No notable differences were detected between the PR and control groups in the distribution of rs3792876 genotypes (CC, CT) and alleles (C, T). In addition, we examined the frequencies of rs1050152 genotypes (CC, CT, TT) and alleles (C, T) between the studied groups. No significant differences were detected. The similar distribution of genotypes and alleles across study groups indicates that these variants are unlikely to play a major role in susceptibility to PR or RA in the Azeri population. Future research should include larger sample sizes, additional candidate polymorphisms, and exploration of potential gene–gene and gene–environment interactions to more comprehensively define the genetic landscape underlying PR and RA.