Effects of NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 polymorphisms on stable warfarin doses in Korean patients with mechanical cardiac valves

Purpose NAD(P)H dehydrogenase, encoded by NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1), is an enzyme that catalyzes the reduction of quinones, including vitamin K. Given its potential role in vitamin K metabolism, this study aimed to investigate the effects of NQO1 polymorphisms on stable warfarin doses. Methods We tested a possible effect of gene polymorphisms on variability in warfarin response using 206 Korean patients with mechanical cardiac valves. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of NQO1 with a minor allele frequency of at least 15 % were included. Also, genotypes of vitamin K epoxide reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1), cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C9, CYP4F2, gamma-glutamyl carboxylase (GGCX), and GATA4 were determined. Results NQO1 rs1800566 (C > T) and rs10517 (C > T) were significantly associated with stable warfarin doses. Variant homozygote carriers required lower stable warfarin doses than those with wild-type C allele in rs1800566 (4.85 +/- A 1.61 vs. 5.61 +/- A 1.94 mg; p = 0.033), whereas patients with wild homozygote required lower doses than those with T allele in rs10517 (5.11 +/- A 1.73 vs. 5.75 +/- A 1.98 mg; p = 0.017). Similar results were obtained from stratified analysis using VKORC1 variant homozygote carriers in both SNPs. Multivariate analysis showed that rs10517 (C > T) increased contribution of gene variations to the overall warfarin dose variability from 42.5 to 43.8 %. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that NQO1 gene polymorphisms influence stable warfarin doses in Korean patients.