Pharmacology

Pharmacogenetics

Pharmacogenetics is the study of how people react to pharmacotherapy. Although this science is still new, many useful discoveries have been made. It has long been known that genes influence the risk of developing certain diseases, or that these genes could determine characteristics such as the colour of hair and eyes. Genes can also alter the risk of developing different diseases. More recently, discoveries have shown that genes can determine other aspects of each individual, up to the level of the enzymes produced in the liver. Since these enzymes determine the rate at which a drug is removed from the body, they can make a significant difference in the way people respond to drugs. Some of the most basic work deals with how race and gender influence drug reactions - and race and gender are genetically determined.