Statins are used in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia, but can cause severe side effects. The SLCO1B1 c.521T>C RealFast™ Assay identifies a genetic variant responsible for simvastatin-induced myopathy.

SLCO1B1

• Simvastatin is a widely prescribed statin for lowering LDL cholesterol levels, but may cause dose-dependent adverse events.
• The c.521T>C variant of the solute carrier organic anion transporter family member 1B1 (SLCO1B1 ) gene affects the hepatic uptake and metabolism of statins.
• Patients carrying the c.521C allele have a higher risk of simvastatin-induced myopathy and rhabdomyolysis.
• Adjustment of simvastatin dose according to the SLCO1B1 c.521T>C genotype is recommended by the Clinical Pharmacogenetic Implementation Consortium (CPIC).

Citations: 

1. Németh S, et al., 2024. Allelic frequencies of polymorphism c.521T>C (rs4149056) favor preemptive SLCO1B1 genotyping in Armenia. Drug metabolism and personalized therapy vol. 39,3 159-161. doi: 10.1515/dmpt-2024-0018.

 2. Enko D., et al., 2018. SLCO1B1 c.521T>C Genotyping in the Austrian Population Using 2 Commercial Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction Assays: An Implementation Study. Pharmacology vol. 102,1-2: 88-90. doi: 10.1159/000490619.