The interaction between genetic factors and therapeutic drugs. Generally, the term is used to describe the study of the genetic bases for individual responses to drugs. Psychiatric pharmacogenetics is a burgeoning area, which constitutes a major arm of current psychiatric research. Ultimately, the goal is to use the patient’s genotype to predict both the response to treatment and the development of side effects. Specific genes linked to the efficacy of psychotropic drugs have already been identified; however, these studies still need to be replicated in different populations.
The study of the influence of hereditary factors on the response of individual organisms to drugs.