Polymorphisms in drug transporter genes (ABCB1, SLCO1B1 and ABCC2) and hepatitis induced by antituberculosis drugs

Unusual drug accumulation is a common mechanism underlying serious drug-induced liver injury. Polymorphisms in three drug transporter genes (ABCB1, SLCO1B1 and ABCC2) may be risk markers for hepatitis induced by the unusual accumulation of anti-tuberculosis drugs (ATDs). We therefore investigated whether polymorphisms and haplotypes of these genes are associated with ATD-induced hepatitis by comparing the frequencies and distributions of single nucleotide polymorphisms and haplotypes of these three drug transporter genes among 67 patients with ATD-induced hepatitis and 159 patients tolerant to ATDs using a multivariate logistic regression analysis. We found that the frequencies of polymorphisms and haplotypes of ABCB1, SLCO1B1 and ABCC2 were similar in patients with ATD-induced hepatitis and ATD-tolerant controls. The present results suggest that these drug transporters do not play important roles in the pathogenesis of ATD-induced hepatitis in Korean patients.