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 [1]
Symbol: BECN1 [2]
Full Name: Beclin 1 [3]
Chromosomal Location: 17q21.31 [4]
NCBI Gene ID: 9277 [5]
OMIM: 604378 [6]
Ensembl ID: ENSG00000126581 [7]
UniProt: Q14457
Proteins: Beclin-1
Associated Diseases: Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease, Breast Cancer, Neurodegeneration
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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, Parkinson's disease, and related disorders.
BECN1 encodes Beclin-1, a key regulator of autophagy and 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.
Beclin-1 is widely expressed in:
Ubiquitous expression reflects its essential role in basic cellular processes.
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.
Hegdekar N et al. "Inhibition of autophagy in microglia and macrophages exacerbates innate immune responses and worsens brain injury outcomes." Autophagy (2023). Autophagy. 2023. ↩︎
Yao RQ et al. "Organelle-specific autophagy in inflammatory diseases: a potential therapeutic target underlying the quality control of multiple organelles." Autophagy (2021). Autophagy. 2021. ↩︎
Rusmini P et al. "Trehalose induces autophagy via lysosomal-mediated TFEB activation in models of motoneuron degeneration." Autophagy (2019). Autophagy. 2019. ↩︎
Chen ML et al. "Inhibition of miR-331-3p and miR-9-5p ameliorates Alzheimer's disease by enhancing autophagy." Theranostics (2021). Theranostics. 2021. ↩︎
Yi J et al. "Spautin-1 promotes PINK1-PRKN-dependent mitophagy and improves associative learning capability in an alzheimer disease animal model." Autophagy (2024). Autophagy. 2024. ↩︎
Luo R et al. "Activation of PPARA-mediated autophagy reduces Alzheimer disease-like pathology and cognitive decline in a murine model." Autophagy (2020). Autophagy. 2020. ↩︎
Beccari S et al. "Microglial phagocytosis dysfunction in stroke is driven by energy depletion and induction of autophagy." Autophagy (2023). Autophagy. 2023. ↩︎