Epigenetic modifications in idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury: A
systematic review
Romina Lorena de los Santos Fernández
Servicio de Aparato Digestivo y Farmacología clínica, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga-IBIMA Plataforma BIONAND, Hospital Universitario Virgen de la Victoria, Universidad de Málaga, Málaga, Spain
Author ProfileAbstract
Aim: Genetic susceptibility has been identified in idiosyncratic
drug-induced liver injury, a potentially severe adverse reaction towards
drugs, herbal products and dietary supplements. Drug-induced liver
injury epigenetic signatures could help explain genetic regulatory
mechanisms behind this disease and might provide disease biomarkers.
This systematic review aims to analyse all available information on
epigenetic risk association studies, as well as to include additional
information on receiver operating characteristic analyses in
idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury when present. Methods: The main
inclusion criteria were population studies on idiosyncratic drug-induced
liver injury with significant risk association between drug-induced
liver injury and an epigenetic regulation mechanism. Results: Out of the
seven included articles six were focused on DNA methylation and one on
long non-coding RNA. All of the studies were on drug-induced liver
injury due to anti-tuberculosis drugs and came from Asia. CpG site
methylation in the CYP2D6 (Odds ratio:9.19, 95% confidence
interval:3.62-25.89, p-value:0.001) and NAT2 (Odds ratio:8.37, 95%
confidence interval:2.39-29.32, p-value:0.001) promoters conferred the
highest risk. Regarding the potential of epigenetic signatures as
biomarkers, LINE-1 and ALU transposable elements hypomethylation levels
showed an area under the curve value of 0.94, indicating their potential
as biomarkers. Conclusions: The majority of the studies were on DNA
methylation and hepatotoxicity due to anti-tuberculosis drugs, with all
of them coming from Asia where tuberculosis is a public health burden.
While this is an area that requires further research, the results of
this systematic analysis suggest the potential of epigenetic regulation
as a new diagnostic and therapeutic target.