RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Heterologous Expression and Functional Characterization of Novel CYP2C9 Variants Identified in the Alaska Native People JF Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics JO J Pharmacol Exp Ther FD American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics SP 233 OP 240 DO 10.1124/jpet.120.265850 VO 374 IS 2 A1 Matthew G. McDonald A1 Lindsay M. Henderson A1 Sutapa Ray A1 Catherine K. Yeung A1 Amanda L. Johnson A1 John P. Kowalski A1 Helmut Hanenberg A1 Constanze Wiek A1 Kenneth E. Thummel A1 Allan E. Rettie YR 2020 UL http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/374/2/233.abstract AB CYP2C9 is a major form of human liver cytochrome P450 that is responsible for the oxidative metabolism of several widely used low–therapeutic index drugs, including (S)-warfarin and phenytoin. In a cohort of Alaska Native people, ultrarare or novel CYP2C9 protein variants, M1L (rs114071557), N218I (rs780801862), and P279T (rs182132442, CYP2C9*29), are expressed with higher frequencies than the well characterized CYP2C9*2 and CYP2C9*3 alleles. We report here on their relative expression in lentivirus-infected HepG2 cells and the functional characterization of purified reconstituted enzyme variants expressed in Escherichia coli toward (S)-warfarin, phenytoin, flurbiprofen, and (S)-naproxen. In the infected HepG2 cells, robust mRNA and protein expression were obtained for wild-type, N218I, and P279T variants, but as expected, the M1L variant protein was not translated in this liver-derived cell line. His-tagged wild-type protein and the N218I and P279T variants, but not M1L, expressed well in E. coli and were highly purified after affinity chromatography. Upon reconstitution with cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase and cytochrome b5, the N218I and P279T protein variants metabolized (S)-warfarin, phenytoin, flurbiprofen, and (S)-naproxen to the expected monohydroxylated or O-demethylated metabolites. Steady-state kinetic analyses revealed that the relative catalytic efficiency ratios of (S)-warfarin metabolism by the P279T and N218I variants were 87% and 24%, respectively, of wild-type CYP2C9 protein. A similar rank ordering was observed for metabolism of phenytoin, flurbiprofen, and (S)-naproxen. We conclude that carriers of the variant N218I and, especially, the M1L alleles would be at risk of exacerbated therapeutic effects from drugs that rely on CYP2C9 for their metabolic clearance.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Novel gene variants of CYP2C9—M1L, and N218I, along with P279T (CYP2C9*29)—are expressed in Alaska Native people at relatively high frequencies. In vitro characterization of their functional effects revealed that each variant confers reduced catalytic efficiency toward several substrates, including the low–therapeutic index drugs (S)-warfarin and phenytoin. These data provide the first functional information for new, common CYP2C9 variants in this understudied population. The data may help guide dose adjustments in allele carriers, thus mitigating potential healthcare disparities.