Biochemical individuality: the next generation.

This paper provides an historical assessment of the development of the concepts of pharmaco- and ecogenetics, including their relationship to major developments in the areas of pharmacology, industrial hygiene, and cancer research in animal models as well as the assessment of inborn metabolic disorders. How this information may be used to evaluate the range of human genetic diversity and its relationship to differential responses to environmental toxins is also considered. The paper concludes by providing a brief summary of several specific conditions in which human genetics traits affect susceptibility to toxic substances.