Pharmacogenetics of antipsychotics: recent progress and methodological issues

Introduction: Antipsychotic drug is the mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia, and there are large inter-individual differences in clinical response and side effects. Pharmacogenetics provides a valuable tool to fulfill the promise of personalized medicine by tailoring treatment based on one's genetic markers. Areas covered: This article reviews the recent progress in pharmacogenetic research of antipsychotic drugs since 2010, focusing on two areas: antipsychotic-induced weight gain and clozapine-induced agranulocytosis. The article also provides discussion on the important methodological issues in this area of research. The specific aim of this article is to provide the reader with up-to-date evidence in pharmacogenetic research, and for them to gain familiarity to the issues and challenges facing the field. Expert opinion: Pharmacogenetic studies of antipsychotic drugs are promising despite many challenges. Recent advances as reviewed in this article push the field closer to routine clinical utilization of pharmacogenetic testing. Progress in genomic technology and bioinformatics, larger sample sizes, better phenotype characterization, and careful consideration of study design issues will help to elevate antipsychotic pharmacogenetics to its next level.