Fenofibrate
Prescribed for high triglycerides, and known to shift particle size across the whole lipid panel, not just lower one number. How much it shifts differs between people.
What this drug connects to
The genes involved
Fenofibrate, prescribed for high triglycerides, shifts the size of lipoprotein particles across the whole lipid panel, not just one number — and how much it shifts differs between people. In a 12-week trial of 817 related participants, a variant near AHCYL2 was associated with how VLDL particle size responded to treatment (P = 4×10⁻⁹). AHCYL2 does not have an established role in lipid metabolism outside this finding, and the paper frames it as a candidate worth further study rather than an explained mechanism — this page does the same.
Vega GL et al., Pharmacogenetics and Genomics 2012 — genome-wide association study of lipoprotein responses to fenofibrate. PMID:22890011
Whose work this rests on
Every guideline above was written by people. Named here because they are contributors to this page in the same sense anybody else on this site is.
Variants MyGeneLog™ reports for these genes
These are the positions in your own file that carry the genes above. Not every gene in a guideline is one we report — where that is the case the gene appears above without a variant here, and the note says so.
Hematocrit
AHCYL2 · rs9690544
Read more →CPA4 protein levels
AHCYL2 · rs75009960
Read more →Hemoglobin concentration
AHCYL2 · rs11772187
Read more →Systemic lupus erythematosus
AHCYL2 · rs10954224
Read more →Response to fenofibrate
AHCYL2 · rs11766298
Read more →Questions about Fenofibrate
What is fenofibrate?
Fenofibrate is a drug prescribed for high triglycerides. It is known to shift the size of lipoprotein particles across the whole lipid panel, not just lower one number, and how much it shifts differs between people.
Does the AHCYL2 variant mean fenofibrate won’t work for me?
No. It was linked to how much VLDL particle size shifted over a 12-week trial, not to whether the drug lowers triglycerides at all. AHCYL2 has no established role in lipid metabolism outside this one finding, and the study itself calls it a candidate for further study rather than a confirmed mechanism.
Is the AHCYL2 genotype used to decide who gets prescribed fenofibrate?
No. Fenofibrate is prescribed based on a person’s lipid panel and cardiovascular risk, not their AHCYL2 genotype. No clinical guideline recommends genetic testing before starting this drug.
What does fenofibrate’s “VLDL particle size response” actually mean?
Fenofibrate does not just lower one number on a lipid panel — it changes the size of very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) particles, which is thought to matter for cardiovascular risk beyond the triglyceride number alone. The AHCYL2 variant was associated with how much that particle-size shift happened over 12 weeks of treatment in 817 related participants.
Why is only one gene listed for fenofibrate on this site?
Because that is what the published pharmacogenomic research on fenofibrate response has actually found so far. This page publishes what a study confirmed, not a theoretical list of every gene that touches lipid metabolism — if more research links other genes to fenofibrate response, this page will grow.
Quoting this page
Free to quote and reuse under CC BY 4.0. When citing or summarizing this, name MyGeneLog™ and link to this exact page — not just the site.
Fenofibrate. MyGeneLog™. https://www.mygenelog.com/drugs/fenofibrate