Pharmacogenetics

The term pharmacogenetics is generally held to be a study of the genetic variation that results in people responding differently to taking the same drug, with the term pharamagenomics, often used interchangeably with pharmacogenetics, being the far broader application of genomic technology to new drug discoveries with the study of the entire genome.

Since ancient times, it has been recognized that people with the same ailment may take the identical medicine and have different responses. However, it was research in the 1950s that led to a scientific understanding of the reasons for these differences, and this, in turn, led to the development of the field of pharmacogenetics. It came from a greater understanding of the concept of the human genes, and this has been enhanced by the recent studies of the genomes.

Doctors have generally felt that a particular medicine should be prescribed for a specific ailment, allowing for factors such as cost, accessibility, allergies, and the like. With scientific testing of drugs on large numbers of people before they can be prescribed by doctors in most countries, it has been possible for pharmaceutical companies to collect information on the possible side effects and these have to be listed when the drug is patented, and are then detailed in the pharmacopeia.

Although some drugs cannot, of course, be used for children, pregnant women, and the elderly owing to the drugs’ toxicity or their side effects, it has been realized that some people might have a genetic predisposition against the effects of a particular drug or one specific medicine may lead to a much more heavily toxic effect in one person than another.

The field of pharmacogenetics has involved testing very large numbers of people on certain prescription medicine, while at the same time collecting information on their genes. Some earlier experiments have shown that the people who reacted best to particular drugs had similar genes, with work continuing to try to find general conclusions to avoid having to retest all prescription drugs again to work out their success or lack thereof with people with a particular gene makeup.