Genetic factors affecting organ transplant drug response
Many patients take the drug tacrolimus after an organ transplant to keep their bodies from rejecting the new organ. But patients respond differently to the drug and need different doses. Too high a dose can cause kidney damage and puts the patient at higher risk of getting an infection. If the dose is too low, the patient’s body may reject the new organ. Many different gene changes influence how a person’s body processes a drug. Using the gene data from BioVU, researchers hope to find combinations of these gene changes that may affect how a patient responds to tacrolimus. This sort of information could help doctors figure out the right drug and dose for each patient.