Pharmacogenomics of osteoporosis

Pharmacogenomics and pharmacogenetics are emerging interdisciplinary areas recently defined, respectively as "the investigation of variations of DNA and RNA characteristics as related to drug response", and the study of "the influence of variations in DNA sequence on drug efficacy and toxicity". A major challenge of future genetic studies in complex disorders such as osteoporosis is the development of specific genetic tests to identify responders from non-responders as well as to identify patients at higher risk to develop adverse reactions. Even though the knowledge of the genetic determinants of bone fragility and fracture risk has consistently increased over the past decade and despite the parallel development of multiple drugs with antiresorptive or anabolic activity in bone, there is still relatively little known about pharmacogenomics and pharmacogenetics of osteoporosis. This review provides an overview of available information and identifies potential targets for future studies in this field. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010.