ACETYLATOR PHENOTYPES - ALLELE FREQUENCY IN NORTHWESTERN ARGENTINA AND REVIEW OF ACETYLATOR DISTRIBUTION IN THE AMERICA

We determined acetylator phenotypes by means of a sulfadimidine test a nd found that 39% of the native population of the province of Jujuy, i n northwestern Argentina, have slow acetylators. The frequency of the allele controlling slow acetylation was estimated at q = 0.65 +/- 0.00 1, This estimate differs from those previously recorded in native and Mestizo American populations. A review of the literature on acetylator phenotypes in the Americas revealed that it is not possible to discer n any clear pattern of distribution in relation to the geographic vari ability observed.