The Ramsey lab is interested in all aspects of pharmacogenetics, from basic research to implementation in patient care. Pharmacogenetics refers to the effect of a person’s genetic code on his/her response to a medication. Research has been done in this field for decades, but only recently has pharmacogenetic information been incorporated into clinical care. There are now guidelines for dosing of more than 30 drugs based on genetic information, provided by the NIH-funded Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC). Many of the genes involved in response to medication alter the pharmacokinetics of the drug (the speed at which it’s absorbed, distributed, metabolized or eliminated).

Dr. Ramsey’s basic research has focused on the transporter SLCO1B1, which is involved in the distribution of many natural compounds (like bilirubin) and drugs (e.g. methotrexate). She was part of the group that first quantified the contribution of rare variants to a pharmacogenetic trait. As part of CPIC, Dr. Ramsey was involved in the development of a clinical guideline for personalized simvastatin dosing based on the SLCO1B1 gene (read more). Her lab is now pursuing how genetic variants influence the transport of methotrexate in children and mice with arthritis.

Dr. Ramsey has joined Cincinnati Children’s Genetic Pharmacology Service to implement pharmacogenetics in patient care. She works with this multidisciplinary team to develop, interpret and implement new pharmacogenetic tests in the electronic medical record. She also educates doctors, pharmacists, genetic counselors and nurses on when and how to use the tests in the clinic. View some of her presentations here and here. Dr. Ramsey is collaborating with investigators in the Center for Autoimmune Genomics and Etiology, and the Divisions of Oncology, Psychiatry, Clinical Pharmacology and Human Genetics on clinical pharmacogenetic research. She has mentored several undergraduate students through the SURF program, and is mentoring graduate students in The Cincinnati Genetic Counseling Graduate Program and The Department of Pharmacology & Systems Physiology at the University of Cincinnati.