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Clopidogrel is widely used to prevent or treat coronary, cerebral, or peripheral artery atherothrombosis. When clopidogrel is converted to an active metabolite, it inhibits the platelet adenosine diphosphate (ADP) receptor, thus limiting platelet aggregation and thrombus formation. Enzymatic conversion of clopidogrel to its metabolite is a function of the hepatic P450 (CYP) enzyme system, specifically, catalysis by the product of the CYP2C19 gene. Polymorphisms of this gene — which occur in approximately 30% of whites, 40% of blacks, and 55% of East Asians — diminish enzymatic conversion. In two large clinical trials, researchers assessed whether loss-of-function polymorphisms of CYP2C19 are associated with excess risk for cardiovascular ev…