BECN1 Gene

📖 Wiki Page

gene519 wordssynced 2026-04-02

BECN1 Gene

Introduction

<table class="infobox infobox-gene">
<tr>
<th class="infobox-header" colspan="2">BECN1 Gene</th>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="label">Symbol</td>
<td><strong>BECLIN1</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="label">Full Name</td>
<td>BECN1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="label">Type</td>
<td>Gene</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td class="label">NCBI</td>
<td><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/?term=BECLIN1" target="_blank">Search NCBI</a></td>
</tr>
</table>

Pathway Diagram

...

BECN1 Gene

Introduction

Pathway Diagram

Mermaid diagram (expand to render)

Becn1 Gene is an important component in the neurobiology of neurodegenerative diseases. This page provides detailed information about its structure, function, and role in disease processes.

:: infobox .infobox-gene [@hegdekar2023] Symbol: BECN1 [@yao2021] Full Name: Beclin 1 [@rusmini2019] Chromosomal Location: 17q21.31 [@chen2021] NCBI Gene ID: [9277](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/9277) [@yi2024] OMIM: [604378](https://www.omim.org/entry/604378) [@luo2020] Ensembl ID: [ENSG00000126581](https://www.ensembl.org/Homo_sapiens/Gene/Summary?g=ENSG00000126581) [@beccari2023] UniProt: [Q14457](https://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/Q14457) Proteins: [Beclin-1](/proteins/beclin-1) Associated Diseases: [Alzheimer's Disease](/diseases/alzheimers-disease), [Parkinson's Disease](/diseases/parkinsons-disease), [Breast Cancer](/diseases/breast-cancer), [Neurodegeneration](/diseases/neurodegeneration)
::

Overview

BECN1 is a gene/protein encoding a key neuronal protein involved in synaptic function, signal transduction, and cellular homeostasis. Dysfunction of BECN1 is associated with neurodegenerative diseases including [Alzheimer's disease](/diseases/alzheimers-disease), [Parkinson's disease](/diseases/parkinsons-disease), and related disorders.

Function

BECN1 encodes Beclin-1, a key regulator of [autophagy](/entities/autophagy) and [apoptosis](/entities/apoptosis). Beclin-1 is part of the PI3K complex that initiates autophagosome formation. It plays a dual role in cell survival (via autophagy) and cell death (via apoptosis). In neurodegenerative diseases, impaired autophagy leads to accumulation of protein aggregates, and Beclin-1 expression is often reduced.

Expression

Beclin-1 is widely expressed in:

Brain ([neurons](/entities/neurons) and glia)
Heart, liver, kidney
Moderate expression in [hippocampus](/brain-regions/hippocampus), [cortex](/brain-regions/cortex), cerebellum
Higher expression during development

Ubiquitous expression reflects its essential role in basic cellular processes.

Key Publications

[Liang XH, et al. (1999). "Induction of autophagy and inhibition of tumorigenesis by beclin 1." Nature](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10521303/)

[Pickford F, et al. (2008). "The autophagy-related protein beclin 1 shows reduced expression in early Alzheimer disease and regulates amyloid beta accumulation in mice." J Clin Invest](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18425089/)

[Wang RC, et al. (2012). "Beclin 1 in the context of macroautophagy and apoptosis." Cell Mol Life Sci](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22382918/)

[Autophagy Protein genes](/entities/autophagy-protein)
[Neurodegeneration pathways](/diseases/neurodegeneration)
[Gene index](/genes)

Background

The study of Becn1 Gene has evolved significantly over the past decades. Research in this area has revealed important insights into the underlying mechanisms of neurodegeneration and continues to drive therapeutic development.

Historical context and key discoveries in this field have shaped our current understanding and will continue to guide future research directions.

External Links

[PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/) - Biomedical literature
[Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative](https://adni.loni.usc.edu/) - Research data
[Allen Brain Atlas](https://brain-map.org/) - Brain gene expression data

References

[Xu Y, Wan W, "Acetylation in the regulation of autophagy." Autophagy (2023) (2023)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2022.2062112)

[Hegdekar N et al., "Inhibition of autophagy in microglia and macrophages exacerbates innate immune responses and worsens brain injury outcomes." Autophagy (2023) (2023)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2023.2167689)

[Yao RQ et al., "Organelle-specific autophagy in inflammatory diseases: a potential therapeutic target underlying the quality control of multiple organelles." Autophagy (2021) (2021)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2020.1725377)

[Rusmini P et al., "Trehalose induces autophagy via lysosomal-mediated TFEB activation in models of motoneuron degeneration." Autophagy (2019) (2019)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2018.1535292)

[Chen ML et al., "Inhibition of miR-331-3p and miR-9-5p ameliorates Alzheimer's disease by enhancing autophagy." Theranostics (2021) (2021)](https://doi.org/10.7150/thno.47408)

[Yi J et al., "Spautin-1 promotes PINK1-PRKN-dependent mitophagy and improves associative learning capability in an alzheimer disease animal model." Autophagy (2024) (2024)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2024.2383145)

[Luo R et al., "Activation of PPARA-mediated autophagy reduces Alzheimer disease-like pathology and cognitive decline in a murine model." Autophagy (2020) (2020)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2019.1596488)

[Beccari S et al., "Microglial phagocytosis dysfunction in stroke is driven by energy depletion and induction of autophagy." Autophagy (2023) (2023)](https://doi.org/10.1080/15548627.2023.2165313)

Pathway Diagram

The following diagram shows the key molecular relationships involving BECN1 Gene discovered through SciDEX knowledge graph analysis:

Mermaid diagram (expand to render)

📖 View canonical wiki page →