Pharmacogenes: Genes That Affect Drug Metabolism

Pharmacogenes are genes that encode enzymes, transporters, and receptors involved in how your body processes medications. Variants in these genes can alter enzyme activity, changing how quickly or slowly you metabolize specific drugs. These differences are associated with a range of clinical outcomes — from reduced drug efficacy to increased risk of adverse effects.

The Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) publishes evidence-based guidelines for gene-drug pairs where genetic information can inform prescribing decisions. DecodeMyBio analyzes your raw DNA data from services like 23andMe and AncestryDNA to determine your metabolizer status for clinically relevant pharmacogenes and maps those results to CPIC guidelines.

Each gene page below explains what the gene does, which medications it affects, the metabolizer phenotype categories defined by CPIC, and the known limitations of consumer genotyping for that gene. These pages are designed to help you understand your Medication Safety Report results and prepare for conversations with your healthcare provider. For background on the science, see What Is Pharmacogenomics?

To learn how raw DNA data is transformed into pharmacogenomic results, read about our methodology and the clinical data sources behind every finding.