Protein / target

Beclin-1

Encoded byBECN1Q14457Homo sapiensSwiss-Prot

UniProt: Q14457 Ensembl: ENSG00000126581 HGNC: HGNC:1034 NCBI Gene: 8678

Small-molecule tractable

Druggability

Structure with Ligand

Research papers

Protein at a glance

Biological role

Protein-macromolecule adaptor

Strongest disease association

Neurodegenerative Diseases

Via encoding gene BECN1 · Pathway evidence · score 0.55

Research activity

Emerging research

4 papers · latest 2024

Derived from structured UniProt, Open Targets and literature data on this page.

Protein profile

UniProt 2026_02

Canonical identity and biological annotation from UniProt.

Function overview

Plays a central role in autophagy.

View complete UniProt function annotation

Plays a central role in autophagy (PubMed:18570871, PubMed:21358617, PubMed:23184933, PubMed:23974797, PubMed:25484083, PubMed:28445460, PubMed:37776275). Acts as a core subunit of the PI3K complex that mediates formation of phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate; different complex forms are believed to play a role in multiple membrane trafficking pathways: PI3KC3-C1 is involved in initiation of autophagosomes and PI3KC3-C2 in maturation of autophagosomes and endocytosis. Involved in regulation of degradative endocytic trafficking and required for the abscission step in cytokinesis, probably in the context of PI3KC3-C2 (PubMed:20208530, PubMed:20643123, PubMed:23974797, PubMed:26783301). Essential for the formation of PI3KC3-C2 but not PI3KC3-C1 PI3K complex forms. Involved in endocytosis (PubMed:25275521). May play a role in antiviral host defense

Subcellular location

CytoplasmGolgi apparatus, trans-Golgi network membraneEndosome membraneEndoplasmic reticulum membraneMitochondrion membraneEndosomeCytoplasmic vesicle, autophagosomeMitochondrionNucleus

Domains and Gene Ontology detail (71)

Gene Ontology

Cautophagosome
Ccytoplasm
Ccytoplasmic side of mitochondrial outer membrane
Ccytosol
Cdendrite
Cendoplasmic reticulum
Cendoplasmic reticulum membrane
Cendosome
Cendosome membrane
Cnuclear body
Cphagocytic vesicle
Cphagophore assembly site

450 aa · 52 kDa

Biological roles

What this protein does, drawn together from its UniProt function, Gene Ontology terms and Reactome pathways.

Growth-factor signallingGOImmune signallingUniProt · GOApoptosis & cell deathGOKinase signallingGO

View supporting evidence

Growth-factor signalling

·cellular response to epidermal growth factor stimulus

Immune signalling

·Plays a central role in autophagy (PubMed:18570871, PubMed:21358617, PubMed:23184933, Pu…
·regulation of cytokinesis

Apoptosis & cell death

·apoptotic process
·negative regulation of apoptotic process
·negative regulation of programmed cell death

Kinase signalling

·protein kinase binding
·positive regulation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B signal transduction

Concepts derived from UniProt GO Reactome — each badge above shows which sources supported that role.

Translational evidence

Open Targets 26

Why this target matters therapeutically, strongest evidence first. Disease associations are gene-level (via the gene that encodes this protein) and open into the full confidence synthesis; the development universe, tractability and safety annotations are target-level, from Open Targets.

Strongest disease associations · via encoding gene BECN1

Gene-level evidence surfaced through the gene BECN1that encodes this protein — not a direct protein–disease relationship. Ranked by Forefront's causal-directness weighting, so genetically- and clinically-evidenced diseases lead over ones that merely share the literature.

Neurodegenerative Diseases

0.38Preliminary

Pathway evidence dominant · Open Targets 0.55 · no direct causal or clinical evidence

COVID-19

0.37Preliminary

Pathway evidence dominant · Open Targets 0.48 · no direct causal or clinical evidence

Dengue

0.25Preliminary

Pathway evidence dominant · Open Targets 0.37 · no direct causal or clinical evidence

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

0.25Preliminary

Pathway evidence dominant · Open Targets 0.37 · no direct causal or clinical evidence

Lysosomal Storage Diseases

0.19Preliminary

Pathway evidence dominant · Open Targets 0.28 · no direct causal or clinical evidence

View evidence synthesis (5)

Neurodegenerative DiseasesPreliminary

0.38

agreement 0.20–0.55

Pathway93%Literature7%

Open Targets aggregate 0.55 · 2 independent evidence families · no direct causal or clinical evidence

COVID-19Preliminary

0.37

agreement 0.20–0.55

Pathway75%Literature25%

Open Targets aggregate 0.48 · 2 independent evidence families · no direct causal or clinical evidence

DenguePreliminary

0.25

agreement 0.07–0.43

Pathway96%Literature4%

Open Targets aggregate 0.37 · 2 independent evidence families · no direct causal or clinical evidence

Severe Acute Respiratory SyndromePreliminary

0.25

agreement 0.07–0.42

Pathway98%Literature2%

Open Targets aggregate 0.37 · 2 independent evidence families · no direct causal or clinical evidence

Lysosomal Storage DiseasesPreliminary

0.19

agreement 0.01–0.36

Pathway99%Literature1%

Open Targets aggregate 0.28 · 2 independent evidence families · no direct causal or clinical evidence

The evidence agreement range shows how closely the independent evidence families agree — it is not a statistical confidence interval, and nothing here is fitted to outcome data. Derived from Open Targets evidence types under Forefront weighting; the per-type scores above show the calculation.

Show all associations

Neurodegenerative Diseases0.55

COVID-190.48

Dengue0.37

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome0.37

Lysosomal Storage Diseases0.28

Neoplasms0.12

Carcinoma, Hepatocellular0.12

Breast Neoplasms0.12

Colorectal Neoplasms0.11

Tractability

Small molecules — Emerging