Other SLE-associated SNPs such as those located in STAT1 or the intergenic region at chromosome 5 nearby microRNA mir-146 also showed a significant indirect effect of SNP on SLE suggesting a mediation role of DNAm, but the proportion mediated did not reach statistical significance (P > 0.05), probably due to the low sample size. Here, STAT1 is linked to systemic lupus erythematosus.