UK Pharmacogenetics and Stratified Medicine Network

The UK Pharmacogenetics and Stratified Medicine Network is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to bringing together groups of academics, clinicians, industry partners, and regulators with patient representatives to support the implementation pathway of stratified/precision/personalized/P4 medicine into the clinic to deliver improvements in drug delivery. Our collaborators database provides unique opportunities for members to engage with colleagues across all sectors of the stratified medicine landscape to promote their activities. Open meetings highlight research findings and the developments in stratified medicine. Focused workshops invite key experts to debate topics of interest and address the challenges of the whole pathway which will eventually lead to the wider adoption of stratified medicine. The website provides comprehensive information including latest news events, funding and education opportunities.

Role of reactive metabolites in drug-induced hepatotoxicity

Drugs are generally converted to biologically inactive forms and eliminated from the body, principally by hepatic metabolism. However, certain drugs undergo biotransformation to metabolites that can interfere with cellular functions through their intrinsic chemical reactivity towards glutathione, leading to thiol depletion, and functionally critical macromolecules, resulting in reversible modification, irreversible adduct formation, and irreversible loss of activity. There is now a great deal of evidence which shows that reactive metabolites are formed from drugs known to cause hepatotoxicity, such as acetaminophen, tamoxifen, isoniazid, and amodiaquine. The main theme of this article is to review the evidence for chemically reactive metabolites being initiating factors for the multiple downstream biological events culminating in toxicity. The major objectives are to understand those idiosyncratic hepatotoxicities thought to be caused by chemically reactive metabolites and to define the role of toxic metabolites.