Genetic association of Angiopoietin-2 rs12674822 and rs3739390 polymorphisms with systemic lupus erythematosus risk: a preliminary single-center study in Egyptian patients

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a multifactorial autoimmune disease influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2), an angiogenesis-related gene, has been implicated in several autoimmune disorders. This study aimed to investigate whether Ang-2 polymorphisms (rs12674822 and rs3739390) are associated with SLE susceptibility in Egyptian patients. A case – control study was conducted, including 80 SLE patients and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Clinical and laboratory data were collected, and genotyping was performed using TaqMan allelic discrimination assays. Associations with SLE were assessed through logistic regression analysis. The results showed that, the rs12674822 GT and TT genotypes were significantly associated with increased SLE risk (OR = 5.15, 95% CI = 2.46–10.78, p < 0.001), and this association remained significant after multivariate adjustment (OR = 7.10, 95% CI = 2.07–24.34, p < 0.05). No significant association was observed for rs3739390. Hardy – Weinberg equilibrium analysis indicated deviation for rs12674822 in controls. The Ang-2 rs12674822 polymorphism may represent a potential genetic risk marker for SLE in Egyptians, whereas rs3739390 showed no association. These findings are preliminary and require confirmation in larger multicentre studies with functional analyses. Notably, the rs12674822 results should be interpreted cautiously due to a borderline deviation from Hardy – Weinberg Equilibrium (p = 0.070).Trial registration Not applicable (observational study).