RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Variants in the SLCO1B1 gene, encoding a hepatic methotrexate (MTX) transporter, affect clearance of high-dose MTX. We tested whether in the *14 and *15 alleles of SLCO1B1 influenced the response to low-dose MTX in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) patients. METHODS: The study included 310 JIA patients genotyped for three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in SLCO1B1 (rs4149056, rs2306283, and rs11045819). A patient's SLCO1B1 diplotype was determined by combining the SNPs into the *1a, *1b, *4, *5, *14, and *15 alleles. Number of active joints at follow-up (visit closest to 6 months of treatment and prior to starting a tumor necrosis factor inhibitor) was used as the dependent variable in a negative binomial regression model that included active joint count at baseline as a covariate. RESULTS: The SLCO1B1*14 allele was associated with less response to MTX (P = 0.024) and the *15 allele was not associated with response to MTX (P = 0.392). CONCLUSION: SLCO1B1 alleles may be associated with poor response to MTX in JIA patients. The *14 allele has been associated with fast clearance (low exposure) after high-dose MTX in patients with leukemia. Thus, the SLCO1B1 gene may be informative for precision dosing of MTX in JIA patients. Patients carrying the *14 allele may require a higher dose than noncarriers to achieve a similar response to MTX.