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Antiplatelet

Ticagrelor

A newer alternative to clopidogrel for acute coronary syndromes, taken directly rather than needing an enzyme to switch it on. Genetics moves its blood levels a measurable amount — and, unlike clopidogrel, that movement has not been shown to change how well it works.

What this drug connects to

Ticagrelor Condition: Coronary Artery Disease Coronary Artery Disease Condition Variant: rs4149081 · SLCO1B1 rs4149081 · SLCO1B1 Variant Variant: rs11045879 · SLCO1B1 rs11045879 · SLCO1B1 Variant Variant: rs4149056 · SLCO1B1 rs4149056 · SLCO1B1 Variant Variant: rs2900478 · SLCO1B1 rs2900478 · SLCO1B1 Variant Variant: rs73079476 · SLCO1B1 rs73079476 · SLCO1B1 Variant Variant: +2 more +2 more Variant Topic: Cholesterol and blood fats Cholesterol and blood fats Topic Topic: Heart and circulation Heart and circulation Topic Topic: Blood sugar and insulin Blood sugar and insulin Topic Ticagrelor Ticagrelor Antiplatelet

Solid lines are connections this site curates. Dashed lines mean the two ends share a research paper — worth knowing, and not a claim that one explains the other.

The genes involved

SLCO1B1

Coronary Artery Disease →

Ticagrelor is a P2Y12 inhibitor prescribed alongside clopidogrel for acute coronary syndromes. In a genome-wide study within the PLATO trial (discovery and replication cohorts totalling 3,753 patients), a variant in SLCO1B1 predicted both ticagrelor and its main metabolite's plasma levels. The same gene, through the same transporter, is the one behind this site's statin muscle-symptom finding — one transporter, two different drugs. Despite the statistical association, the study's own conclusion is that these genetic effects on drug levels were modest and did not detectably change efficacy or safety in the 4,990 patients whose clinical outcomes were analysed. A measurable pharmacokinetic effect that does not reach clinical significance — reported here for what it is rather than what it might imply.

Varenhorst C et al., European Heart Journal 2015 — genetic variation and ticagrelor plasma levels and clinical outcomes in the PLATO trial. PMID:25935875

CYP3A4/CYP3A5 region

Coronary Artery Disease →

The same PLATO-trial study found a second, independent signal for ticagrelor plasma levels in the CYP3A4/CYP3A5 gene region — genes that metabolise a large share of prescription drugs generally. As with the SLCO1B1 finding on this page, the effect on drug levels was real but modest, and the study found no detectable downstream effect on how well ticagrelor worked or how safe it was.

Varenhorst C et al., European Heart Journal 2015 — genetic variation and ticagrelor plasma levels and clinical outcomes in the PLATO trial. PMID:25935875

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.

Metabolic traits

SLCO1B1 · rs4149081

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Metabolite levels

SLCO1B1 · rs11045879

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Statin muscle-side-effect risk

SLCO1B1 · rs4149056

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Plasma estrone conjugates levels in resected early stage estrogen-receptor positive breast cancer

SLCO1B1 · rs2900478

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Serum metabolite levels

SLCO1B1 · rs73079476

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Serum metabolite levels

SLCO1B1 · rs11045856

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Heel bone mineral density

SLCO1B1 · rs4149083

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Questions about Ticagrelor

What is ticagrelor?

Ticagrelor is a P2Y12 inhibitor prescribed alongside clopidogrel for acute coronary syndromes, taken directly rather than needing an enzyme to switch it on. Genetics moves its blood levels a measurable amount, though that hasn’t been shown to change how well it works.

Does the SLCO1B1 variant mean ticagrelor won’t work as well for me?

No. A study within the PLATO trial (3,753 patients) found this SLCO1B1 variant predicted ticagrelor blood levels, but among the 4,990 patients whose outcomes were analysed, the effect was modest and did not detectably change how well the drug worked or how safe it was.

Is SLCO1B1 the same gene behind the statin muscle-symptom finding on this site?

Yes — same gene, same transporter (OATP1B1), two completely different drugs, though the consequence isn’t the same in each case.

Does the CYP3A4/CYP3A5 region also affect ticagrelor?

Yes. The same PLATO study found a second, independent signal for ticagrelor blood levels in the CYP3A4/CYP3A5 region. As with SLCO1B1, the effect on drug levels was real but modest, with no detectable effect on efficacy or safety.

This page is educational and contains no dosing information. Where a clinical guideline covers one of these gene-drug pairs it is written for prescribers and works through validated algorithms alongside clinical monitoring. Nothing here is a reason to start, stop, or change a medication — that conversation belongs with the clinician or pharmacist managing your treatment.