What Is Precision Genomic Testing?
A PGX and NGX Guide for Clinicians and Patients
How pharmacogenomic and nutrigenomic data support individualized care — and where assessment fits on the path to better health.
Two patients can receive the same diagnosis, be prescribed the same medication, and respond in completely different ways. One improves. One notices nothing. One has an adverse reaction no one anticipated.
That variation is rarely random. It is biology.
Precision Genomic Testing — PGX (pharmacogenomic) and NGX (nutrigenomic) testing — gives physicians a way to examine some of that individual biology before building a plan of care, rather than discovering it through trial and error afterward.
This guide covers what each test actually reads, how clinicians apply the results, what patients can expect, and how genomic assessment connects to regenerative medicine.
Key Takeaways
PGX testing reads gene variants that influence how a person metabolizes certain medications.
NGX testing reads gene variants associated with nutrition, metabolism, and wellness pathways.
Both are genotype tests — they read inherited DNA, not current physiological status.
The FDA has reviewed pharmacogenetic information for more than 300 drug-gene pairs.[2]
Results are one input in a comprehensive clinical evaluation, interpreted alongside history, examination, and laboratory findings.
Genomic assessment is the “Assess” step on the Genesis Regenerative Roadmap to Better Health.
What Is Pharmacogenomic (PGX) Testing?
Pharmacogenomic testing evaluates selected genetic variations that may influence how an individual metabolizes certain medications. It examines genes coding for drug-metabolizing enzymes — how quickly a compound is broken down, how strongly it acts, and how likely it is to interact with other medications a patient is taking.
Pharmacogenomics is the most clinically established area of genomic medicine. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration maintains a public Table of Pharmacogenomic Biomarkers in Drug Labeling, established in 2008.[1] A 2021 analysis in Annals of Pharmacotherapy identified 308 drug-gene pairs with FDA-reviewed pharmacogenetic information, of which 87% were associated with an efficacy or safety-related outcome.[2]
Separately, the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) — an NIH-funded international consortium — publishes peer-reviewed, evidence-graded guidelines explaining how to interpret genetic results for specific gene-drug pairs. CPIC grades each pair by evidence level, from A (genetic information should inform prescribing) through D.[3]
CYP2D6 and CYP2C19 are among the most frequently referenced pharmacogenes in FDA labeling.[4]
What Is Nutrigenomic (NGX) Testing?
Nutrigenomic testing evaluates gene variants associated with nutrition, metabolism, and wellness-related biological pathways. Rather than focusing on medications, NGX panels examine inherited variation in areas such as nutrient processing, metabolic response to dietary fat and carbohydrate, and hormone metabolism pathways.
Genesis Regenerative’s NGX offering is organized into focused panels — dnadiet®, dnahealth®, dnasport®, dnaskin®, dnamind®, and dnaoestrogen® — each examining gene variations relevant to a specific area of wellness.
Nutrigenomics is a younger field than pharmacogenomics. It does not yet have the equivalent of FDA drug labeling or a formal prescribing-guideline consortium. NGX is best positioned as adjunctive insight supporting nutrition and lifestyle conversations — not as a source of definitive clinical conclusions.[8,9]
PGX vs. NGX: What Each Test Reads
| PGX (Pharmacogenomic) | NGX (Nutrigenomic) | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Medication metabolism | Nutrition, metabolism, wellness pathways |
| Reads | Gene variants in drug-metabolizing enzymes | Gene variants in nutrient and metabolic pathways |
| Clinical maturity | Established — FDA labeling, CPIC guidelines | Emerging — adjunctive insight |
| Primary use | Informing medication selection and dosing | Informing nutrition and lifestyle discussion |
| Sample | Non-invasive swab or blood draw | Non-invasive swab or blood draw |
| Frequency | Once — inherited DNA does not change | Once — inherited DNA does not change |
What Genomic Testing Does and Does Not Show
This distinction matters, and it is worth being precise about.
PGX and NGX are genotype tests. They read inherited gene variants. Because your DNA does not change, these tests are performed once and the results remain relevant for life.[5]
They do not measure your current physiological state. A genotype panel examines the gene variants you carry — it does not measure your present vitamin levels, inflammatory markers, hormone concentrations, gut microbiome composition, or environmental exposures. Those require separate biochemical and phenotypic laboratory panels.
The accurate framing is: “you carry gene variants associated with how your body processes folate” — not “your folate level is low.” The first is what a genotype test reads. The second requires blood work.
This is why genomic results are most useful when a physician reads them alongside conventional laboratory findings, not instead of them.
The Clinician’s Perspective: Why Incorporate PGX/NGX Testing?
Most physicians already practice individualized medicine intuitively — adjusting a dose, switching a medication after a poor response, layering in nutrition and lifestyle guidance. Genomic testing is best understood not as a replacement for that judgment, but as another instrument in the clinical armamentarium: one that can move some of those adjustments from after the fact to before the first prescription.
What PGX data can support:
- Evaluating individual genotypes relevant to drug metabolism
- Informing medication and dose selection by identifying patients who may be poor or rapid metabolizers[7]
- Anticipating rather than reacting to potential adverse drug effects[6]
- Reducing the likelihood of drug-drug interactions — particularly valuable in polypharmacy and older patients
What NGX data can support:
- More individualized nutrition and lifestyle conversations
- Understanding inherited variation in metabolic and nutrient-processing pathways
- Establishing a documented biological baseline
Genesis PGX reports include a QR code supporting ongoing look-up of FDA-labeled medications, so a report remains useful as a patient’s medication list changes over time.
Where it fits in the workflow
Genomic testing is one component of a comprehensive clinical evaluation. CPIC itself frames its guidelines as guidance on how to interpret results a clinician already has — not as a mandate on whether to order testing.[3]
Results are read in conjunction with the patient’s medical history, current symptoms, care history, laboratory findings, physical examination, and health goals. The physician still selects the appropriate approach — or combination of approaches — for the individual patient and clinical concern. Genomic assessment simply widens the aperture before that decision is made.
The Patient’s Perspective: What Does This Mean for You?
If you have ever been prescribed a medication that did nothing, worked too strongly, or produced side effects no one expected, you already understand the problem genomic testing addresses.
Your body runs on chemistry that is genuinely yours. Precision Genomic Testing gives your physician a way to understand more about that chemistry, so the care they provide can be shaped around your biology rather than a population average.
- What the process involves: a non-invasive sample — typically a cheek swab or standard blood draw — collected in your physician’s office.[5] Because your DNA does not change, testing is generally done once.
- How your physician uses the results: your results are reviewed alongside your medical history, current symptoms, care history, laboratory work, physical examination, and your own health goals. The information helps your physician individualize the options that fit you.
- What it is not: genomic testing does not diagnose disease, does not guarantee an outcome, and is not a therapy in itself. What it provides is information — and for many patients, confidence that the plan they are following was built with their individual biology in mind.
How Genomic Assessment Complements Regenerative Medicine
Regenerative medicine is built around a different goal than much of conventional care: rather than managing symptoms indefinitely, it aims to support the body’s own capacity to repair.
But repair does not happen in a vacuum. It happens inside a specific person — with a specific genetic profile, metabolic reality, and biological baseline.
That is precisely why assessment belongs first.
A patient’s biological baseline meaningfully shapes how they respond to regenerative approaches. Two patients receiving the same protocol may differ significantly in the factors that influence their outcome. Understanding some of those factors in advance gives the clinician a data-informed foundation for individualization, and gives the patient a clearer sense of the terrain their body is starting from.
Genomic testing is the Assess step. It is what turns regenerative medicine from a single intervention into a personalized strategy.
The Roadmap to Better Health: Assess. Repair. Maintain.
Genesis Regenerative develops its own regenerative products and promotes Precision Genomic Testing through its laboratory and diagnostics partners, together supporting a sequenced, physician-directed approach to care rather than a single event. Genesis is not a clinic and does not deliver care itself; a licensed physician incorporates these tools into an individualized plan:
- Assess — PGX / NGX Testing. Understand your genetic profile and identify inherited factors that may influence medication response and overall wellness. Creates a data-driven foundation for long-term health.
- Repair — Regenerative Protein Array (RPA). An acellular, non-DNA protein signaling product, developed by Genesis and incorporated by clinicians into physician-directed protocols to support the body’s natural repair processes.
- Maintain — Push Patch. Convenient, non-invasive support designed to help sustain progress between clinical visits.
Assessment is what makes the rest of the roadmap personal.
Precision Genomic Testing does not replace clinical judgment — it informs it. Pharmacogenomics offers an established, guideline-supported way to understand how a patient may metabolize medications. Nutrigenomics offers emerging, adjunctive insight into inherited metabolic and nutritional variation. Both are genotype tests, read once, and most valuable when interpreted alongside a full clinical picture.
For patients considering regenerative approaches, genomic assessment provides a documented biological starting point. For clinicians, it adds an instrument to an already well-equipped toolkit.
As with any element of care, patient selection and clinical decision-making remain the responsibility of the licensed physician. Thought-leading clinicians continue to learn more every day about matching the appropriate approach to the right patient and the right health concern — and that judgment is exactly what Precision Genomic Testing is designed to support, not replace.
To discuss whether genomic assessment fits your situation, find a Genesis clinician or explore our patient education resources.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the difference between PGX and NGX testing?
PGX (pharmacogenomic) testing examines gene variants that influence how you metabolize certain medications. NGX (nutrigenomic) testing examines gene variants associated with nutrition, metabolism, and wellness-related pathways. Both read inherited DNA. PGX is the more clinically established of the two, supported by FDA drug labeling and CPIC prescribing guidelines.
Does PGX/NGX testing measure my vitamin levels or inflammation?
No. PGX and NGX are genotype tests — they read the gene variants you inherited, not your current physiological status. Measuring current vitamin levels, inflammatory markers, hormone concentrations, or microbiome composition requires separate biochemical laboratory panels. Your physician may order those alongside genomic testing to build a fuller picture.
How often do I need genomic testing?
Generally once. Your inherited DNA does not change over your lifetime, so genotype results remain relevant permanently. Genesis PGX reports include a QR code supporting ongoing look-up of FDA-labeled medications, so the report stays useful as your medication list changes.
Does genomic testing diagnose disease?
No. Genomic testing does not diagnose any condition and is not a therapy. It provides one category of information within a comprehensive clinical evaluation. Your physician interprets results alongside your medical history, symptoms, laboratory findings, physical examination, and health goals.
Is the testing process invasive?
No. Testing typically requires a cheek swab or a standard blood draw collected during a routine office visit.
Where is the genomic testing processed?
Genesis Regenerative promotes PGX/NGX testing to clinicians through its laboratory and diagnostics partners; it does not develop the testing science or perform laboratory analysis itself. PGX testing is processed through Genesis’s molecular diagnostic laboratory partner, Resolve MDx — headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee and operating as a CLIA-certified independent laboratory. NGX panels are provided in partnership with DNAlysis Biotechnology, developer of the dnadiet®, dnahealth®, dnasport®, dnaskin®, dnamind®, and dnaoestrogen® tests.
References
- Frueh FW, Amur S, Mummaneni P, et al. Pharmacogenomic Biomarker Information in Drug Labels Approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration: Prevalence of Related Drug Use. Pharmacotherapy. 2008;28(8):992-998. https://doi.org/10.1592/phco.28.8.992; current table at https://www.fda.gov/drugs/science-and-research-drugs/table-pharmacogenomic-biomarkers-drug-labeling
- Cheng CM, So TW, Bubp JL. Characterization of Pharmacogenetic Information in Food and Drug Administration Drug Labeling and the Table of Pharmacogenetic Associations. Annals of Pharmacotherapy. 2021;55(10):1185-1194. https://doi.org/10.1177/1060028020983049
- Relling MV, Klein TE, Gammal RS, et al. The Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium: 10 Years Later. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics. 2020;107(1):171-175. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31562822/; guideline levels at https://cpicpgx.org/genes-drugs/
- Deb S, Hopefl R, Reeves AA, Cvetkovic D. ADME Gene-Related Pharmacogenomic Labeling of FDA-Approved Drugs: Comparison with Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium (CPIC) Evidence Levels. Medicines. 2024;11(3):6. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicines11030006
- National Library of Medicine. Pharmacogenetic Tests. MedlinePlus. https://medlineplus.gov/lab-tests/pharmacogenetic-tests/
- Swen JJ, van der Wouden CH, Manson LEN, et al. A 12-Gene Pharmacogenetic Panel to Prevent Adverse Drug Reactions: An Open-Label, Multicentre, Controlled, Cluster-Randomised Crossover Implementation Study. The Lancet. 2023;401(10374):347-356. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01841-4
- Oslin DW, Lynch KG, Shih MC, et al. Effect of Pharmacogenomic Testing for Drug-Gene Interactions on Medication Selection and Remission of Symptoms in Major Depressive Disorder: The PRIME Care Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2022;328(2):151-161. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2794053
- Ouhtit A. Nutrigenomics: From Promise to Practice. Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal. 2014;14(1):e1-e3. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3916260/
- Ferguson LR, De Caterina R, Görman U, et al. Guide and Position of the International Society of Nutrigenetics/Nutrigenomics on Personalised Nutrition: Part 1 – Fields of Precision Nutrition. Journal of Nutrigenetics and Nutrigenomics. 2016;9(1):12-27. https://doi.org/10.1159/000445350
Disclaimer
dnadiet®, dnahealth®, dnasport®, dnaskin®, dnamind®, and dnaoestrogen® are registered trademarks of DNAlysis Biotechnology.
This content is provided for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Precision Genomic Testing does not diagnose disease and is not a therapy. It is one component of a comprehensive clinical evaluation. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider regarding your individual health, medications, and care options.
