Relationship Between Paraoxonase-1 Genotype and Activity, and Major Adverse Cardiovascular Events and Malignancies in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis Receiving Tofacitinib.

OBJECTIVE: This post hoc analysis investigated the relationship between paraoxonase-1 (PON1) genotype and activity, and risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and malignancies in tofacitinib rheumatoid arthritis (RA) clinical studies.

METHODS: Data were pooled from 9 phase II/III studies and the associated long-term extension studies (all completed by October 2017). PON1 activities in plasma were measured using paraoxon (paraoxonase activity), dihydrocoumarin (lactonase activity), and phenylacetate (arylesterase activity) as substrates. PON1 Q192R genotype effect on baseline PON1 activity was assessed using linear regression for each study, with fixed-effects meta-analysis across studies. MACE and malignancy risk by time-varying enzyme activity was determined using Cox proportional hazards regression.

RESULTS: The analysis included 1,969 patients with RA. Compared with the QQ genotype, RR had a significant positive association with baseline paraoxonase activity and a significant negative association with baseline lactonase and arylesterase activity (all p < 0.001). Time-varying models demonstrated a significant association of increased paraoxonase activity over time with lower risk of MACE (p < 0.001) and malignancies (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer [NMSC]; p ≤ 0.05), even after controlling for risk factors identified in univariate analysis and RA disease activity. A similar trend was observed for lactonase and arylesterase for MACE.

CONCLUSION: Higher paraoxonase activity over time was associated with significantly reduced risk of future MACE and malignancies (excluding NMSC), but not NMSC, in patients with RA receiving tofacitinib. Further investigation of PON1 as a novel functional lipid biomarker of MACE/malignancy risk in patients with RA is warranted.