The usual inference is that the difference in drug effect is due to some genetic difference between the two groups.
However, given the genetic homogeneity (Ashcroft alert) of Homo Sapiens and the mixed ancestry of what are denoted as 'races', it seems at least as likely that the difference in drug effect is due to behavioral (life style) differences between the groups, which could be a much more transitory effect.
At 11:40 AM -0600 11/15/04, jim clark wrote:
Hi
On Mon, 15 Nov 2004, michael sylvester wrote:It appears that some Eurocentric drugs may have differential effects on whites and blacks.A just released study shows that certain drugs may be less beneficial to blacks. It is found that a combination of the drug Bidel with some other cardiac dug is more effective with blacks.
It has been appreciated for some time that drugs might interact
with race (although it is unlikely that the drugs are actually
being Eurocentric with respect to their attitudes toward the
recipient of the drugs). Nor is it always the case that
Europeans respond more favorably to drugs (another indicator that
the drugs are not discriminating in any social psychology sense). See, for example, the following link, which includes the
subsequent passage.
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2003/303_race.html
------------------------------------------------------------ Some studies have shown racial differences in drug response. In the United States, whites are more likely than people of African or Asian heritage to have abnormally low levels of an enzyme that metabolizes drugs belonging to a variety of therapeutic areas, such as antidepressants, antipsychotics, and beta blockers. Other studies have shown that blacks respond less to several classes of antihypertensive agents, including beta blockers and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. Additionally, slower metabolism of some drugs in the psychotherapeutic class has been seen in people of Asian descent compared to whites and blacks. The differences are complex and may be due to genetic factors, diet, environmental exposure, sociocultural issues, or a combination of these factors. --------------------------------------------------------------
Best wishes Jim
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