To investigate the SLCO1B1 388A> G and 521T> C polymorphisms in hyperlipidemia patients and evaluate the effect of the two polymorphisms on the lipid-lowering efficacy of pitavastatin.
The functional polymorphisms of SLCO1B1 ( 388A> G and 521T> C) were genotyped in 140 Chinese patients with essential hyperlipidemia using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and one-step tetra-primers ARMS-PCR. Eighty-five patients were enrolled in the clinical trial and given 2 mg of pitavastatin daily for 8 weeks. Total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) serum levels were measured at baseline, after 4 weeks and after 8 weeks of treatment.
The allele frequencies of SLCO1B1 388A> G and 521T> C in essential hyperlipidemia patients were 71.1% and 11.1%, respectively. The 4- and 8-week treatment with pitavastatin significantly reduced TC, TG, and LDL levels, but there was no statistical difference among patients with wild type, SLCO1B1 388A> G or SLCO1B1 521T> C in the lipid-lowering efficacy of pitavastatin.