Thiopurine S-methyltransferase pharmacogenetics: chaperone protein association and allozyme degradation.

Thiopurine S-methyltransferase (TPMT) catalyses the S-methylation of thiopurine drugs such as 6-mercaptopurine. A common genetic polymorphism for TPMT is associated with large individual variations in thiopurine drug toxicity and therapeutic efficacy. TPMT*3A, the most common variant allele in Caucasians, has two alterations in amino acid sequence, resulting in striking decreases in TPMT protein levels.

Human histamine N-methyltransferase pharmacogenetics: gene resequencing, promoter characterization, and functional studies of a common 5'-flanking region single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP).

Histamine N-methyltransferase (HNMT) catalyzes one of two major metabolic pathways for histamine. The levels of HNMT activity and immunoreactive protein in human tissues are regulated primarily by inheritance. Previous studies of HNMT identified two common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), including a functionally significant nonsynonymous coding SNP (cSNP), (C314T, Thr105Ile), but that polymorphism did not explain all of the phenotypic variation.

Mouse histamine N-methyltransferase: cDNA cloning, expression, gene cloning and chromosomal localization.

Objective: Histamine N-methyltransferase (HNMT) catalyzes the Ntau-methylation of histamine. We set out to clone a mouse liver HNMT cDNA and the mouse HNMT gene as steps toward characterizing molecular genetic mechanisms involved in the regulation of this important histamine-metabolizing enzyme.

Design: A PCR-based strategy was used to clone both the mouse HNMT cDNA and the gene encoding that cDNA, Hnmt.