A single nucleotide polymorphism of reduced folate carrier 1 predicts methotrexate efficacy in Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Abstract

  Methotrexate (MTX) exhibits large inter-individual and inter-ethnic differences in the dose required for its anti-rheumatic effect. To maintain low disease activity, patients may require increased MTX doses or co-administration of biologic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs). The availability of a marker predicting the effect of MTX will make it possible to increase the MTX dose and prescribe bDMARDs to patients at an early stage. To establish individualized medication for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), we investigated genetic polymorphisms of the folate pathway in Japanese RA patients. Eighty-nine patients were treated with MTX alone (MTX group). MTX and bDMARDs were co-administered to 81 patients because of insufficient MTX efficacy (MTX + bDMARDs group); an equally stable therapeutic effect was achieved in both groups. Polymorphism analyses using bDMARD co-treatment as the objective variable revealed a significant association between age and the G80A polymorphism of the reduced folate carrier 1 gene (RFC1) as an explanatory variable. Compared to patients with the A allele, patients with the G allele may have less intracellular MTX uptake and, therefore, poor efficacy; a greater number of them were found to be bDMARD concomitant cases. The results of this study suggest that the RFC1 G80A polymorphism may be a useful marker for predicting MTX efficacy in Japanese patients with RA.

• Authors: Hideki Hayashi, Yui Tazoe, Seiji Tsuboi, Masato Horino, Mariko Morishita, Teruhisa Arai, Motohiro Ohshima, Taiji Matsuyama, Kazuhiro Kosuge, Hiroshi Yamada, Daiki Tsuji, Kazuyuki Inoue, Kunihiko Itoh
• Journal: Drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics (Drug Metab Pharmacokinet) Vol. 28 Issue 2 Pg. 164-8 ( 2013) ISSN: 1880-0920 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 22971639 (Publication Type: Clinical Trial, Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Antirheumatic Agents
• Biomarkers, Pharmacological
• Reduced Folate Carrier Protein
• Methotrexate

Topics

• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Alleles
• Antirheumatic Agents (administration & dosage, therapeutic use)
• Arthritis, Rheumatoid (blood, drug therapy, genetics)
• Asian People (genetics)
• Biomarkers, Pharmacological (blood)
• Drug Therapy, Combination
• Female
• Genotype
• Humans
• Japan
• Male
• Methotrexate (administration & dosage, therapeutic use)
• Middle Aged
• Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide (genetics)
• Precision Medicine (methods)
• Reduced Folate Carrier Protein (genetics)