Pharmacogenomics of Psychiatric Drugs

Psychiatric pharmacogenomics combines the science of pharmacology and genetics to predict the interindividual outcomes (i.e., therapeutic response and adverse drug reactions) of psychiatric drug treatment. In the last decade, there has been an explosion in research examining the variation in therapeutic and adverse effects of antipsychotics (APs) across individuals. Current studies mainly focus on the identification of pharmacokinetic targets (e.g., cytochrome P450 superfamily) and pharmacodynamic targets (e.g., serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine). This chapter provides a review of relevant pharmacogenetic studies and treatments of psychiatric disorders in clinical practice. It also includes a brief discussion for future directions.