Liverpool uni to pioneer genetic medication project

Sep 5 2007

A £5 million health study to develop medication tailored to a patient’s genetic make-up was announced today.

The research aims to reduce the number of people who suffer allergic reactions to medication, a problem which costs the NHS an estimated £466m each year.

The programme, based at the University of Liverpool, will initially focus on patients with epilepsy, asthma and acute coronary syndrome.

The university is using a £3 million grant from the Department of Health to create the UK’s only NHS Chair in Pharmacogenetics.

Using a further £2 million donated by the Wolfson Foundation, it will set up a Centre for Personalised Medicines.

Personalised medication is based on a patient’s unique genetic make-up, allowing clinicians to prescribe the correct drug to the patient at the correct dose to achieve the maximum benefit and minimise the risk of side-effects.

Professor Munir Pirmohamed from the University of Liverpool’s Department of Pharmacology has been appointed to the Chair and will lead a team of 11 scientists, researchers and nurses in identifying the gene groups which dictate a patient’s response to a drug.

The research will be carried out in collaboration with the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Royal Liverpool Children’s Hospital (Alder Hey) and other hospitals in the North West.

Professor Pirmohamed said: “The study of pharmacogenetics is vital to the public health of this country.

“One of our recent studies showed that at any one time the equivalent of more than seven 800-bed hospitals are taken up with the patients who have suffered the side effects of drugs they have been prescribed.

“It is important to note that the way we respond to drugs is determined not only by genetic factors but also by environmental factors such as our diet and if we smoke.

“Through this comprehensive research strategy, we will build up a very detailed clinical picture of each individual patient and link it to genetic profiles with the aim of maximising the efficacy and reducing the potential toxicity of treatments.”

Minister for Health, Ben Bradshaw, added: “Pharmacogenetics has enormous potential to improve the effectiveness and safety of the treatment patients receive and this Chair will make a major contribution to both boosting research capacity and raising awareness of pharmacogenetics among NHS clinicians.”