The complete sequencing of the human genome in 2000, along with new technologies, such as DNA microarrays, for analyzing human genes on a genome-wide scale, provides scientists with the tools to study the molecular basis of diseases on a level and scale that previously had not been possible. Pharmacogenomics is a biomedical science that aims to use this knowledge to tailor drug therapies based on patients' individual genetic makeup. Doctors hope to use pharmacogenomics to develop safer and more effective medical treatments. For some diseases, this promise has already been realized.

Molecular Interactions and Drug Effectiveness

Pharmacogenomics is a branch of pharmacogenetics, a science that deals with the heritable traits responsible for the individual differences in the ways people respond to drugs. It is remarkable, considering the myriad of medications we have today, how little we understand about how most of them actually work. There...