The SLC22A13 gene helps kidney cells move small substances, including uric acid, which supports normal control of uric acid levels in the blood. This gene helps your body balance uric acid, so if it works differently, levels may shift and can influence the chance of gout. The SLC22A13 gene is not widely known outside genetics and kidney research, but it is relevant in studies of uric acid handling and why some people are more or less likely to develop gout.
What is a gene?
Genes are stretches of DNA that give your cells instructions for making molecules or managing functions in the body. Some genes carry the code for proteins, which do much of the cell’s work. Others are used mainly to regulate when certain activities happen, where they take place, and how active they are. Together, genes affect how the body grows and works, and they can influence how you respond to food, stress, and medicines. For a closer look at this topic, you can find more in the LearnHub.
Overview
SLC22A13Gene function
What if the gene works
The SLC22A13 gene helps kidney cells move urate and some other small charged molecules across cell membranes. This supports the body’s handling of uric acid and related substances in urine.
Risk
What if the gene does not work
Variants in the SLC22A13 gene can range from mild to more disruptive and may reduce how well cells transport certain small molecules, including urate, across their membranes. More severe variants are expected to cause a larger drop in transporter activity.
Treatment
What does that mean for your treatment
No treatment or drug choice is currently guided by pathogenic or loss-of-function variants in the SLC22A13 gene. It is being studied as a kidney urate transporter that may become a future target for urate-lowering medicines, but this has not led to guideline-based care.
Gene function
What if the gene works
As your kidneys make urine, they constantly sort small substances in and out of the cells lining the tubules. The SLC22A13 gene helps with that job by making a transporter that carries certain charged molecules, including uric acid, across cell membranes. This supports everyday kidney balance.
The SLC22A13 gene provides instructions for a membrane transporter that moves selected small charged molecules into or out of cells. This lets kidney cells handle everyday chemical traffic in a controlled way.
One of its best known jobs is helping the kidneys handle uric acid during urine formation. The transporter moves uric acid across the surface of kidney tubule cells, supporting normal uric acid balance.
This protein helps fine tune which filtered substances are taken up by kidney cells and which remain in urine. That sorting role supports the kidney's steady cleanup work from moment to moment.
What is a variant?
A genetic variant is a small difference in the DNA sequence within a gene. These changes are common and help shape normal human diversity, such as differences in appearance, metabolism, or the way the body responds to environmental influences. Many have no noticeable effect and simply represent natural genetic variation. In some situations, though, a variant can change how a gene functions more substantially and may contribute to or cause a genetic condition.
Genetic variants
What if the gene does not work
Changes in the SLC22A13 gene can alter the OAT10 transporter so it folds less well, reaches the cell surface less efficiently, or moves its usual small charged molecules more poorly. In this way, SLC22A13 gene variants may reduce transporter activity at the cell membrane. Some variants have a mild effect, while more disruptive variants can lead to very low or absent transport function.
How variants are linked to conditions
Broadly confirmed SLC22A13 gene disease associations have not been established, and the SLC22A13 gene is not yet linked to one specific health condition in the same way as many better-known disease genes. If you have a reported variant in the SLC22A13 gene, your own test result and medical history are the most important guides for interpretation with your doctor or genetic counselor.
A variant is not necessarily a diagnosis
Genetic variants are common across the general population and are a normal feature of human biology. Most do not directly affect health and instead reflect natural variation among people. For many genes, having a variant associated with a condition points to a possible link, not a certain diagnosis, particularly when several genes and environmental influences play a role. In some situations, though, one well-characterized variant in a particular gene is enough to confirm the diagnosis.
Are there things that can increase or change my risk?
There isn't yet broadly confirmed evidence on specific factors that increase or reduce risk related to the SLC22A13 gene itself. Some changes in this gene have been linked with differences in uric acid levels, but overall risk still depends on many other genes, health conditions, and everyday factors such as diet and kidney health.
Inheritance of SLC22A13 variants
For inheritance of the SLC22A13 gene variants, there is not yet a broadly confirmed pattern tied to a specific inherited condition. As research stands, changes in the SLC22A13 gene are not used in clinical genetics as a well-established example of autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive, or X-linked inheritance. The SLC22A13 gene is located on chromosome 3, which is an autosome, so each person inherits one copy from their mother and one copy from their father.
What does my SLC22A13 result mean for my family?
There is not yet a broadly confirmed inheritance pattern tied to a specific health condition for SLC22A13, though this can become clearer as research grows. If you have a specific SLC22A13 result and want to know what it could mean for relatives, a doctor or genetic counselor can help explain it in the context of your family history.
Genetic information
Genetic testing
How you find out about variants
Genetic testing for SLC22A13 variants usually uses a blood sample, saliva, or a cheek swab. The lab reads the DNA sequence of the SLC22A13 gene and compares it with the usual sequence to look for changes, then classifies any variant using established medical evidence.
When should I consider getting a genetic test?
There isn't yet a broadly established SLC22A13-specific reason for genetic testing in routine care. Testing decisions are usually based on your personal health and family history, with guidance from a doctor or genetic counselor.
A genetic result is only one part of your health story
Genetic test results can offer useful insight, but how much they reveal depends on the specific condition and the kind of variant involved. How the body functions over time is also shaped by many factors, including lifestyle, environment, age, and medical history. In some conditions, especially those influenced by many genes, genetic information provides context rather than certainty and is most helpful when considered together with other parts of care. In other situations, a genetic result may give a clear answer. In areas like medication response, genetic results can also help put individual experiences into context.
Pharmacogenetics
How variants shape your response to medicine
Genetic variation can affect how people respond to medicines. Small differences in genes can change how the body absorbs, breaks down, moves, or responds to a drug, so the same treatment may work better for one person than for another. This is common and can influence how much benefit someone gets from a medicine or how sensitive they are to side effects.
What is Pharmacogenetics?
Pharmacogenetics examines how genetic differences affect responses to medications. It studies links between genes and drugs to help explain why the same treatment can work differently in different people. For many medicines, genes influence how strongly a drug works or how the body processes it. This information can support more informed, individualized treatment decisions. You can learn more about this topic in the LearnHub.
Drugs influenced by the SLC22A13 gene
When should I seek medical advice?
There is not yet a broadly confirmed role for this gene in guiding medication choice or dose, so any concerns about side effects, new symptoms, or how your medicines may affect you are best discussed with your doctor.