Rollout of genotype picker tool on DPWG guideline annotations

The allele pull-down menu (also known as the genotype-picker tool) on PharmGKB annotations of CPIC guidelines is an extremely popular feature among users. We are pleased to now expand this functionality to annotations of guidelines from the Royal Dutch Association for the Advancement of Pharmacy - Pharmacogenetics Working Group (DPWG).

The genotype picker tool relies on determining the following information from each guideline:

1. Which alleles are covered by the guideline

2. The assigned functional status of each allele

3. How allele function combinations are mapped to phenotype groups

The DPWG recommendations that are downloadable from the Dutch Pharmacy Organization’s (KNMP) website and annotated on PharmGKB do not typically contain allele functional status or phenotype group mappings. However, this information is often available in KNMP’s ‘gene background’ files which are posted separately.  While DPWG generally follows the same allele-to-phenotype mappings as CPIC, there are some gene-specific differences. These differences mean that all DPWG gene mappings need to be curated into PharmGKB separately from CPIC’s mappings. Our mapping process for each gene covered by DPWG guidelines, including curator notes, can be found here. As we now have internally curated mappings of allele function to phenotype for DPWG, more DPWG guidelines can now be used to support our Level 1A clinical annotations.

Genotype pickers are now available for all annotations of DPWG guidelines with recommendations for HLA-B, CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 genotypes. Work is ongoing to curate DPWG-assigned allele functions and phenotype groups for other genes into PharmGKB. As each gene is curated, genotype pickers will be released on relevant guideline annotation pages.