Introduction: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) demonstrates a high heterogeneity in clinical responses to treatment. Although the efficacy of biological therapy has undoubtedly been established, the response differs considerably between individuals. This variability between individuals has aroused the research for biomarkers predictive of treatment response. Pharmacogenomics underlying individual responses to drugs is rapidly developed and has the potential of realizing the personalized therapy in RA. This review will summarize the pharmacogenomics of biological therapies approved for clinical RA treatment.
Areas covered: The pharmacogenomics underlies individual responses to biological drugs in RA. Current studies on pharmacogenomics of biological therapy in RA are presented.
Expert opinion: The personalized treatment in RA according to pharmacogenomics is promising, but the available pharmacogenomic data on biological treatment in RA are not adequate and consistent and still require further larger sample studies to corroborate.