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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Human thiopurine S-methyltransferase pharmacogenetics: variant allozyme misfolding and aggresome formation.

Thiopurine S-methyltransferase (TPMT) catalyzes the S-methylation of thiopurine drugs. TPMT genetic polymorphisms represent a striking example of the potential clinical value of pharmacogenetics. Subjects homozygous for TPMT*3A, the most common variant allele for low activity, an allele that encodes a protein with two changes in amino acid sequence, are at greatly increased risk for life-threatening toxicity when treated with standard doses of thiopurines. These subjects have virtually undetectable levels of TPMT protein. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that TPMT*3A might result in protein misfolding and aggregation. We observed that TPMT*3A forms aggresomes in cultured cells and that it aggregates in vitro, functional mechanisms not previously described in pharmacogenetics. Furthermore, there was a correlation among TPMT half-life values in rabbit reticulocyte lysate, aggresome formation in COS-1 cells, and protein aggregation in vitro for the three variant allozymes encoded by alleles that include the two TPMT*3A single-nucleotide polymorphisms. These observations were compatible with a common structural explanation for all of these effects, a conclusion supported by size-exclusion chromatography and CD spectroscopy. The results of these experiments provide insight into a unique pharmacogenetic mechanism by which common polymorphisms affect TPMT protein function and, as a result, therapeutic response to thiopurine drugs.

Alleles↗

Thiopurine S-methyltransferase pharmacogenetics: variant allele functional and comparative genomics.

Thiopurine S-methyltransferase (TPMT) catalyses the S-methylation of thiopurine drugs. Genetic polymorphisms for TPMT are a major factor responsible for large individual variations in thiopurine toxicity and therapeutic effect. The present study investigated the functional effects of human TPMT variant alleles that alter the encoded amino acid sequence of the enzyme, TPMT*2, *3A, *3B, *3C and *5 to *13. After expression in COS-1 cells and correction for transfection efficiency, allozymes encoded by these alleles displayed levels of activity that varied from virtually undetectable (*3A,*3B and *5) to 98% (*7) of that observed for the wild-type allele. Although some allozymes had significant elevations in apparent Km values for 6-mercaptopurine and S-adenosyl-L-methionine (i.e. the two cosubstrates for the reaction), the level of enzyme protein was the major factor responsible for variation in activity. Quantitative Western blot analysis demonstrated that the level of enzyme protein correlated closely with level of activity for all allozymes except TPMT*5. Furthermore, protein levels correlated with rates of TPMT degradation. TPMT amino acid sequences were then determined for 16 non-human mammalian species and those sequences (plus seven reported previously, including two nonmammalian vertebrate species) were used to determine amino acid sequence conservation. Most human TPMT variant allozymes had alterations of residues that were highly conserved during vertebrate evolution. Finally, a human TPMT homology structural model was created on the basis of a Pseudomonas structure (the only TPMT structure solved to this time), and the model was used to infer the functional consequences of variant allozyme amino acid sequence alterations. These studies indicate that a common mechanism responsible for alterations in the activity of variant TPMT allozymes involves alteration in the level of enzyme protein due, at least in part, to accelerated degradation.

Alleles↗

Reduced (+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine ("Ecstasy") metabolism with cytochrome P450 2D6 inhibitors and pharmacogenetic variants in vitro.

"Ecstasy" [(+/-)-3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine or MDMA] is a CNS stimulant, whose use is increasing despite evidence of long-term neurotoxicity. In vitro, the majority of MDMA is demethylenated to (+/-)-3,4-dihydroxymethamphetamine (DHMA) by the polymorphic cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6). We investigated the demethylenation of MDMA and dextromethorphan (DEX), as a comparison drug, in reconstituted microsomes expressing the variant CYP2D6 alleles (*)2, (*)10, and (*)17, all of which have been linked to decreased enzyme activity. With MDMA, intrinsic clearances (V(max)/K(m)) in CYP2D6.2, CYP2D6.17, and CYP2D6.10 were reduced 15-, 13-, and 135-fold, respectively, compared with wild-type CYP2D6.1. With DEX, intrinsic clearances were reduced by 37-, 51-, and 164-fold, respectively. It was evident that CYP2D6.17 displayed substrate-specific changes in drug affinity (K(m)). Compounds potentially used with MDMA [fluoxetine, paroxetine, (-)-cocaine] demonstrated significant inhibition of MDMA metabolism in both human liver and CYP2D6.1-expressing microsomes. These data demonstrate that individuals possessing the CYP2D6(*)2, (*)17, and, particularly, (*)10 alleles may show significantly reduced MDMA metabolism. These individuals, and those taking CYP2D6 inhibitors, may demonstrate altered acute and/or long-term MDMA-related toxicity.

Alleles↗

HLA and non-HLA genetic analyses reveal suggestive variants associated with statin-induced liver injury.

BACKGROUND: Statins are widely prescribed for cardiovascular risk reduction and are generally well tolerated. However, they can cause drug-induced liver injury (DILI), and the genetic factors contributing to statin-DILI remain poorly understood. METHODS: HLA association and genome-wide association (GWAS) studies were conducted to identify genetic variants associated with statin-DILI. High-confidence cases (n=71) were identified from the Drug-Induced Liver Injury Network (DILIN) and compared with statin-exposed controls without liver injury (n=551) from the Indiana Biobank. Association testing was performed across ancestries and within ancestry, adjusting for age, sex, and three principal components of genotypes. Top variants were further evaluated in non-statin DILI cases and unexposed controls. In addition, we investigated the frequency of candidate variants among a comprehensive list of pharmacogenetic variants related to statins. RESULTS: HLA-DQA1*03:01 was significantly associated with increased risk of statin-DILI (OR=3.49, 95% CI 2.21-5.51, p-value=1.27&#xd7;10-7), with enrichment observed across multiple ancestry groups, particularly non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic individuals. From the GWAS, three loci showed suggestive associations (p-value <5&#xd7;10-06) with statin-DILI, including rs35197737 in RGS1 (OR=5.03, 95% CI 1.11-3.66, p=1.14&#xd7;10-7), rs75629598 in FRMD4A (OR=4.4, 95% CI=2.33-8.12, p=3.97&#xd7;10-6), and rs7658630 in the intergenic region on chromosome 4 (OR=4.86, 95% CI 2.66-8.85, p=2.68&#xd7;10-7). No pharmacogenetic variants revealed statistical significance. CONCLUSION: We identified HLA and non-HLA genetic variants associated with statin DILI. Future studies with larger sample sizes should confirm these observations.

Humans↗

Orofacial cleft risk is increased with maternal smoking and specific detoxification-gene variants.

Maternal smoking is a recognized risk factor for orofacial clefts. Maternal or fetal pharmacogenetic variants are plausible modulators of this risk. In this work, we studied 5,427 DNA samples, including 1,244 from subjects in Denmark and Iowa with facial clefting and 4,183 from parents, siblings, or unrelated population controls. We examined 25 single-nucleotide polymorphisms in 16 genes in pathways for detoxification of components of cigarette smoke, to look for evidence of gene-environment interactions. For genes identified as related to oral clefting, we studied gene-expression profiles in fetal development in the relevant tissues and time intervals. Maternal smoking was a significant risk factor for clefting and showed dosage effects, in both the Danish and Iowan data. Suggestive effects of variants in the fetal NAT2 and CYP1A1 genes were observed in both the Iowan and the Danish participants. In an expanded case set, NAT2 continued to show significant overtransmission of an allele to the fetus, with a final P value of .00003. There was an interaction between maternal smoking and fetal inheritance of a GSTT1-null deletion, seen in both the Danish (P=.03) and Iowan (P=.002) studies, with a Fisher's combined P value of <.001, which remained significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Gene-expression analysis demonstrated expression of GSTT1 in human embryonic craniofacial tissues during the relevant developmental interval. This study benefited from two large samples, involving independent populations, that provided substantial power and a framework for future studies that could identify a susceptible population for preventive health care.

Arylamine N-Acetyltransferase↗

Methylation pharmacogenetics: catechol O-methyltransferase, thiopurine methyltransferase, and histamine N-methyltransferase.

Methyl conjugation is an important pathway in the biotransformation of many exogenous and endogenous compounds. Pharmacogenetic studies of methyltransferase enzymes have resulted in the identification and characterization of functionally important common genetic polymorphisms for catechol O-methyltransferase, thiopurine methyltransferase, and histamine N-methyltransferase. In recent years, characterization of these genetic polymorphisms has been extended to include the cloning of cDNAs and genes, as well as a determination of the molecular basis for the effects of inheritance on these methyltransferase enzymes. The thiopurine methyltransferase genetic polymorphism is responsible for clinically significant individual variations in the toxicity and therapeutic efficacy of thiopurine drugs such as 6-mercaptopurine. Phenotyping for the thiopurine methyltransferase genetic polymorphism represents one of the first examples in which testing for a pharmacogenetic variant has entered standard clinical practice. The full functional implications of pharmacogenetic variation in the activities of catechol O-methyltransferase and histamine N-methyltransferase remain to be determined. Finally, experimental strategies used to study methylation pharmacogenetics illustrate the rapid evolution of biochemical, pharmacologic, molecular, and genomic approaches that have been used to determine the role of inheritance in variation in drug metabolism, effect, and toxicity.

Animals↗

Pharmacogenetics in biological perspective.

What have we learned? Pharmacogenetics, heritable variation in response to xenobiotics, is present in all forms of life. Initially, human data perhaps have created the most excitement, and they provide much biochemical detail. However, if we look at pharmacogenetic variation of insects and bacteria, we see it as a characteristic of populations; individuals with inborn resistance to various toxicants can cause the survival of a population by the process of Darwinian selection. Diversity of a population and Darwinian selection are different milestones serving population survival. Variation of drug response may represent variation of drug targets, drug metabolism, and probably drug transport. Metabolic variation appears to be the most prominent; at present, it is not clear whether this prominence has historical or biological causes. It is an interesting exercise to compare pharmacogenetic resistance with intoxication and resistance to infection by invasion of disease-carrying bacteria or other pathogens. The big difference is that pathogens tend to show variabilities that drugs do not have. The immune system is made to deal with the genetic variabilities linked to the short life span of most pathogens. However, there are, besides the immune system, several cases of genetic host resistance associated with the long life span of mammalian hosts. Such genetic host resistances are factors equivalent to pharmacogenetic variation. Current data pertain to resistance against malaria, tuberculosis, cholera, and AIDS. Most pharmacogenetic variants within a population are preadaptive, that is, they are established before xenobiotic exposure. Hence, one must postulate a multiplicity of variants in a population capable of resisting a multiplicity of drugs. The persistence of this multiplicity suggests that most variants are either present in heterozygous form and are thereby advantageous for their carriers, or they are selectively neutral mutants. It means that the biological cost of pharmacogenetic diversity, measured in terms of reduced fertility, should be low in a population. The frequencies of variant genes are usually not the same in different populations. Also the nucleotide substitutions in a variable gene often differ between populations. In other words, pharmacogenetic differences between populations are typical events. Pharmacogenetics is usually thought of as the study of a situation in which a single gene product exerts control over a given drug response so that a failure to respond, or an excessive response, may result. However, one should not forget that random variation is always present, probably reflecting the randomness of mutations plus variation of any environmental factors that might contribute. This underlying randomness of variation will always affect the picture of any all-or-none variation. Future pharmacogenetics must deal with both random and monogenic variation.

Animals↗

The influence of cytochrome P450 pharmacogenetics on disposition of common antidepressant and antipsychotic medications.

Since the identification of all the major drug-metabolising cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes and their major gene variants, pharmacogenetics has had a major impact on psychotherapeutic drug therapy. CYP enzymes are responsible for the metabolism of most clinically used drugs. Individual variability in CYP activity is an important reason for drug therapy failure. Variability in CYP activity may be caused by various factors, including endogenous factors such as age, gender and morbidity as well as exogenous factors such as co-medication, food components and smoking habit. However, polymorphisms, present in most CYP genes, are responsible for a substantial part of this variability. Although CYP genotyping has been shown to predict the majority of aberrant phenotypes, it is currently rarely performed in clinical practice.

Journal Article↗

OCT1 Variants Are Associated with Metformin Clearance and Gluconeogenesis: Mechanistic Insights for Youth-Onset Type 2 Diabetes in the MIGHTY Study.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Behavioral and phenotypic characteristics do not fully explain variability in African Americans with youth-onset type 2 diabetes (Y-T2D) treated with metformin with or without liraglutide. We hypothesized that biological heterogeneity, including genetic variation in the metformin transporter OCT1, influences metformin pharmacokinetics and hepatic glucose flux. Therefore, we sought to characterize metformin pharmacokinetics in Y-T2D and evaluate genetic variants known to modulate metformin efficacy in adults to determine the mechanisms underlying variation in treatment response. METHODS: We evaluated genetic variants related to metformin transport and mechanisms of action in 30 Y-T2D using a candidate-gene approach to evaluate the association of pharmacogenetic variants with fasting glucose and gluconeogenesis. In a subset of Y-T2D randomized to 3 months of metformin (n=11) or metformin and liraglutide (n=8), we constructed a metformin population pharmacokinetic model and evaluated gene variant associations. RESULTS: A one-compartment first-order absorption and elimination pharmacokinetic model provided the optimal fit. Metformin pharmacokinetic parameters were similar by group and not related to glycemia. The rs628031_OCT1 A allele was associated with greater metformin clearance. The rs622342_OCT1 C allele was associated with lower post-treatment fractional gluconeogenesis (&#x3b2; [95% CI] = -8.8 [-14.13, -3.47] %, Adjusted R2 = 0.56, P = 0.003). The rs7903146_TCF7L2 T allele was associated with greater reductions in fasting glucose among those treated with metformin + liraglutide (&#x3b2; = -1.32 [-2.42, -0.22] mmol/L, Adjusted R2 = 0.8, P<0.002), but baseline glucose and gluconeogenesis (P<0.0001) were the strongest predictors of post-treatment glycemia. CONCLUSION/INTERPRETATION: In Y-T2D, OCT1 gene variants rs628031 and rs622342 were associated with metformin clearance and gluconeogenesis, respectively. TCF7L2 variant rs7903146 may contribute to differences in glycemic response in youth treated with metformin and liraglutide. These findings suggest genetic variants may be important for understanding variable metformin response in Y-T2D.

SLC22A1↗

From "magic bullet" to "specially engineered shotgun loads": the new genetics and the need for individualized pharmacotherapy.

Steady progress in the identification of human pharmacogenetic variants and new discoveries of disease susceptibility genes makes the old notion of one disease/one drug untenable. Advances in the ability to rapidly identify these variants, when coupled with appropriate drug delivery systems, should revolutionize pharmacotherapy.

Genetic Predisposition to Disease↗

Studies on biomarkers in cancer etiology and prevention: a summary and challenge of 20 years of interdisciplinary research.

Sensitive, specific methods have been developed that allow quantitative measurements of the metabolites of carcinogen metabolites and of DNA and protein adducts in humans exposed occupationally, environmentally and endogenously to genotoxic agents. The interrelationship between exposure to carcinogens, host risk factors and the responses of biomarkers has been examined in cross-sectional, ecological and case-control studies which provided new insights into the causes of cancer and the mechanisms of carcinogenesis. The identification of hitherto unknown DNA-reactive chemicals formed in the human body from dietary precursors and of carcinogenic components of complex mixtures has increased the possibility of establishing causal relationships in etiology. The identification of individuals and subgroups heavily exposed to carcinogens has led to the development of measures for avoiding or decreasing exposure to carcinogenic risk factors. New, ultrasensitive methods for measuring DNA adducts allow the quantification and structural elucidation of specific DNA damage in humans arising from oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation (LPO), which have been found to be the driving forces in several human malignancies. Background DNA damage in "unexposed" individuals has been shown unequivocally to be due to LPO products, and a significant interindividual variation in adduct levels has been shown in individuals with comparable exposure to carcinogens. Thus, pharmacogenetic variants with higher susceptibility to carcinogenic insults, due to genetic polymorphism in xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes, have been characterized by a combination of genotyping and measurements of macromolecular adducts. Dosimetry has been used in human studies to evaluate the efficacy of interventions with chemopreventive agents like ascorbic acid, dietary phenols and green tea. Advances in the application of selected biomarkers in human studies are reviewed and illustrated by examples from the author's research conducted during the past two decades.

Biomarkers↗

Idiosyncratic drug reactions: interaction of development and genetics.

There is a major need for biologic markers closely linked to the mechanisms of susceptibility and toxicity of xenobiotics that can aid in elucidation of populations at risk. Such markers, genetic or developmental, need to be interpreted in light of the mechanism of toxicity of the specific compound. It is likely that maximum progress in this area will be made by integration of biologic markers of susceptibility (closely linked to the basic toxicologic mechanisms of the compound in question) with human epidemiologic studies. "New" pharmacogenetic variants in drug metabolism are being discovered at an ever-increasing rate. Molecular biology approaches to variant genes, as well as in vivo and cellular probes of toxicologically important metabolic pathways, are likely to serve as significant tools in predicting who is at risk for an ADR, and in confirming clinical impressions of ADR causality. Linked with epidemiologic studies of ADR incidence, it will be increasingly possible to discover the relative roles of development and genetics in ADRs.

Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions↗

Corticosteroid pharmacogenetics: association of sequence variants in CRHR1 with improved lung function in asthmatics treated with inhaled corticosteroids.

Corticosteroids mediate a variety of immunological actions and are commonly utilized in the treatment of a wide range of diseases. Unfortunately, therapy with this class of medications is associated with a large proportion of non-responders and significant side effects. Inhaled corticosteroids are the most commonly used asthma controller therapy. However, asthmatic response to corticosteroids also varies widely between individuals. We investigated the genetic contribution to the variation in response to inhaled corticosteroid therapy in asthma. The association of longitudinal change in lung function and single nucleotide polymorphisms from candidate genes crucial to the biologic actions of corticosteroids were evaluated in three independent asthmatic clinical trial populations utilizing inhaled corticosteroids as the primary therapy in at least one treatment arm. Variation in one gene, corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1) was consistently associated with enhanced response to therapy in each of our three populations. Individuals homozygous for the variants of interest manifested a doubling to quadrupling of the lung function response to corticosteroids compared with lack of the variants (P-values ranging from 0.006 to 0.025 for our three asthmatic populations). As the primary receptor mediating the release of adrenocorticotropic hormone, which regulates endogenous cortisol levels, CRHR1 plays a pivotal, pleiotropic role in steroid biology. These data indicate that genetic variants in CRHR1 have pharmacogenetic effects influencing asthmatic response to corticosteroids, provide a rationale for predicting therapeutic response in asthma and other corticosteroid-treated diseases, and suggests this gene pathway as a potential novel therapeutic target.

Administration, Inhalation↗

Focus on The 5-HT1A receptor: emerging role of a gene regulatory variant in psychopathology and pharmacogenetics.

While multiple lines of evidence implicate the 5-HT1A receptor in the pathophysiology of anxiety and depression as well as in the mechanism of action of anxiolytics/antidepressants, its relevance to the therapeutic effectiveness of these drugs has been a matter of considerable debate (for review see Griebel, 1995; Hensler, 2003; Hjorth et al., 2000; Lesch et al., 2003). In the current issue of the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, however, both Serretti et al. (2004) and Lemonde et al. (2004) make a strong argument for contribution of a functional 5-HT1A receptor gene variant in the pharmacogenetics of antidepressant treatment with prototypic tricyclics and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Furthermore, the third study in this series by Huang and associates (2004) reveals an association of allelic variation of 5-HT1A receptor expression in a wide spectrum of psychopathology including schizophrenia, substance abuse, and panic disorder. Not unexpectedly, the failure to detect a consistent effect of this gene variation on 5-HT1A receptor functionality in the mature brain as indicated by both receptor binding in post-mortem brain and in-vivo receptor responsivity further supports a critical role of the 5-HT1A receptor in engineering neurodevelopmental processes which may have the potential to set the stage for the brain's permissiveness for psychopathology in later life. The availability of an increasing number of functional gene variants within the serotonergic pathway together with integration of emerging concepts of developmental genetics of complex traits will provide the groundwork for the molecular dissection of syndromal dimensions and treatment response.

Alleles↗

Serotonin transporter gene-linked polymorphic region: possible pharmacogenetic implications of rare variants.

A functional insertion/deletion (*l/*s) repeat polymorphism within the promoter region of the serotonin transporter (5-HTTLPR) has been described. An association between *l variant and a better and faster response to serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors in depressed patients was reported in Caucasians. The value of the explained variance due to the 5-HTTLPR, however, was 7% only, and different *l and *s variants were reported according to the nucleotide sequence of repeats. In this study, we investigated the antidepressant response to fluvoxamine in individuals carrying different *l and *s variants according to the Nakamura findings. Two hundred and twenty-eight patients affected by bipolar disorder and major depression were administered a daily dose of fluvoxamine up to 300 mg and evaluated at baseline and weekly thereafter until week 7, using the 21-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. We found a marginally significant difference in genotype and allele (P=0.04, data not shown) distribution (*l and *s traditional variants) according to diagnosis (bipolar disorder vs. major depression). We confirmed a better and faster response in our depressed patients bearing the *l variant, but we also found significant differences in response among *l carriers according to the type of *l allele. In fact, 16F *l carriers showed only a partial response, while 16D *l carriers showed a marginally significantly better response than 16A *l allele carriers. These results, although very preliminary, can represent a further step toward a better understanding of the molecular genetics of antidepressant response.

Adult↗

CEPH individuals are representative of the European American population: implications for pharmacogenetics.

Previous studies have highlighted the use of phenotype generation in immortalized lymphoblastoid cells from the Centre d'Etude du Polymorphisme Humain (CEPH) pedigrees as a powerful means of discovering genes involved in complex biological and pharmacological phenotypes. However, there is no data on how representative CEPH pedigrees are of the general population of European origin for genetic variants of pharmacogenetic significance. A vast amount of data in a population of restricted applicability would be of little value. Genotype and allele frequencies of 28 variants in 15 pharmacogenetically relevant genes were analyzed in germ-line DNA from European- and African-origin blood donors, and CEPH cell lines of European origin. The results demonstrate that allele frequencies for the 28 polymorphisms are highly similar between the CEPH and the European-origin populations. However, genotype frequencies in the CEPH population did not provide a high level of prediction for the African-origin population. These data support the usefulness of the CEPH panel in pharmacogenetic discovery efforts for European-derived populations.

Black People↗