Genetically Tailored Drugs That Are More Effective, Are Focus of Conference

NEW YORK CITY, Oct. 1 ??? Individuals differ in their physical response to prescription drugs, a reality that???s long been problematic for both patients and doctors. A drug that helps some people can cause serious side effects in others or elicit no response at all. A two-day conference being held Thursday, Oct. 3 and Friday, Oct. 4 at The New York Academy of Medicine will explore the emerging field of ???pharmacogenetics??? in which researchers are developing genetically tailored drugs that will fight and possibly prevent illness more effectively than any medications now on the market.

Scientists from some of the world???s major universities and premier pharmaceutical firms, including Genset, Novartis, Wyeth and Eli Lilly, will discuss their efforts to develop more beneficial medicines that target specific human genes. Genetically tailored drugs are a relatively new concept made possible by the ongoing mapping of the entire human genome. Researchers are toiling to map the location of all human genes, which are responsible for making each person unique. Understanding the genome will allow precise new approaches for treating and preventing disease, and perhaps for developing drugs that act on the cause of a disease rather than just the symptoms.

???The emergence of pharmacogenetics marks a new era in medicine, with the prospect of safer and more effective drugs,??? said Dr. Alan R. Fleischman, Senior Vice President for Academic and Medical Affairs at The New York Academy of Medicine. ???Pharmaco-genetically tailored drugs are beginning to be studied, and within the next few years will be commonplace.???

Pharmacogenetics involves the collection of comprehensive information about specific proteins and genes in order to improve drug design and effectiveness. Because existing drugs are not typically genetically tailored, it is not uncommon for patients to have adverse reactions. The 1995 Adverse Drug Event Prevention Study found that 6.5 percent of patients admitted to hospitals experienced an adverse drug reaction, and 28 percent of those reactions were preventable.

The Academy???s conference will bring together clinicians, FDA experts and world-class researchers to discuss the challenges of bringing genetically tailored drugs out of the research laboratory and into the pharmacies for consumers??? use. Scientists will shed light on their efforts to identify drug-response genes, to specify the function and therapeutic utility of specific genes, to address regulatory and ethical implications of genetically targeted drugs, and more. Speakers and their topics will include:

• Daniel Cohen, MD, PhD, Scientific Director of Genset (France), From Linkage to Causative Pathways

• Lawrence M. Gelbert, PhD, Research Scientist, Group Leader, Functional Genomics Eli Lilly & Company, Identifying Drug-Response Genes (Drug Discovery in the Post-Human Genome Era)

• Mihael Polymeropoulos, MD, V.P. & Head of the Pharmacogenetics Dept., Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Genetics in Medical Practice

• Alastair J.J. Wood, MD, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research, Vanderbilt University, Will We Prescribe by Genotype?

• David B. Goldstein, PhD, Wolfson Professor of Genetics, University College of London, Population Structure, Linkage Disequilibrium and the Genetic Basis of Variable Drug Response

• Atiqur Rahman, PhD, Team Leader, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research Food and Drug Administration, Pharmacogenetics: Regulatory Consideration in Drug Development & Drug Approval

The conference will be held on Thursday, Oct. 3 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Friday, Oct. 4 from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at The New York Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Ave. (entrance on 103rd St.). Media must register in advance with Kathryn Cervino by calling 212.822.7285, or via email at kcervino@nyam.org.

See directions to the Academy.

See the conference program online

The event is sponsored by the Academy with support from the Pharmacogenetics Working Group, consisting of 19 pharmaceutical companies engaged in pharmacogenetics research. The New York Academy of Medicine is a non-profit institution founded in 1847 that is dedicated to enhancing the health of the public through research, education and advocacy, with a particular focus on the problems affecting disadvantaged urban populations.

Posted on October 2, 2002

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Contact:
Andrew J. Martin
Director of Communications
The New York Academy of Medicine
1216 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10029
212-822-7285
amartin@nyam.org

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