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10 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 14 days ago
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HPX
hemopexin
Chromosome 11 · 11p15.4
NCBI Gene: 3263Ensembl: ENSG00000110169.13HGNC: HGNC:5171UniProt: P02790
102PubMed Papers
20Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
FUNCTIONAL ROLE
Transporter
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
protein bindingextracellular matrixextracellular exosomeblood microparticlepanniculitisneoplasmhepatocellular carcinomaacute kidney injury
✦AI Summary

Hemopexin (HPX) is a plasma protein that binds heme and transports it to the liver for breakdown and iron recovery, after which free hemopexin returns to circulation [UniProt]. Beyond its classical heme-scavenging role, HPX has emerged as a multifunctional regulator with broader physiological significance. Mechanistically, HPX operates through multiple pathways. In intestinal and hepatic contexts, HPX suppresses cell proliferation and migration while inhibiting MAPK signaling activation 1. HPX also protects against lipopolysaccharide-induced epithelial damage by reducing apoptosis and maintaining tight junction integrity through ZO-1 expression 2. In hemolytic conditions, HPX therapy reduces free heme-mediated oxidative stress, thereby decreasing atherosclerotic plaque accumulation 3. Clinically, HPX demonstrates prognostic significance across multiple diseases. High HPX levels predict poor prognosis in older colorectal cancer patients 4, while low HPX associates with gastric lesion progression risk and early gastric cancer development 5. In hepatocellular carcinoma, HPX downregulation contributes to lenvatinib resistance through MAPK pathway activation, suggesting HPX restoration as a therapeutic strategy 1. Additionally, genetic variants at the HPX locus associate with nine plasma proteins, indicating pleiotropic effects on cardiovascular homeostasis 6. These findings position HPX as both a biomarker and potential therapeutic target across hemolytic, gastrointestinal, and malignant diseases.

Sources cited
1
HPX increases in Xingpi Capsule-treated IBS-D rats and protects colonic epithelial cells from LPS-induced damage by inhibiting ASK1/P38 MAPK pathway
PMID: 36641976
2
HPX is inversely associated with risk of gastric lesion progression and early gastric cancer development
PMID: 34818622
3
High HPX levels predict poor prognosis in older patients with colorectal cancer
PMID: 38321225
4
HPX suppresses HCC cell proliferation, migration, invasion and lenvatinib resistance by inhibiting MAPK signaling; phthalate exposure downregulates HPX
PMID: 40858030
5
HPX therapy reduces free heme-mediated oxidative stress and decreases atherosclerotic plaque accumulation in beta-thalassemia and hemolysis models
PMID: 37682237
6
HPX gene locus contains a novel pleiotropic variant associated with nine plasma proteins relevant to cardiovascular disease
PMID: 34814699
Disease Associationsⓘ20
panniculitisOpen Targets
0.21Weak
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
hepatocellular carcinomaOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
acute kidney injuryOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
malariaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitisOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
nephrotic syndromeOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
focal segmental glomerulosclerosisOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
Respiratory Syncytial Virus InfectionOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
familial idiopathic steroid-resistant nephrotic syndromeOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
Pallister-Hall syndromeOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
Dent diseaseOpen Targets
0.06Suggestive
IGA glomerulonephritisOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
nail-patella-like renal diseaseOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
congenital nephrotic syndrome, Finnish typeOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
Schnyder corneal dystrophyOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
nephrotic syndrome, type 24Open Targets
0.05Suggestive
familial juvenile hyperuricemic nephropathy type 1Open Targets
0.05Suggestive
nephrotic syndrome 15Open Targets
0.05Suggestive
cancerOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
MMP9Protein interaction100%TIMP2Protein interaction100%MMP2Protein interaction100%APOA1Protein interaction99%F2Protein interaction98%TIMP4Protein interaction96%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Liver
100%
Ovary
0%
Lung
0%
Bone Marrow
0%
Heart
0%
Brain
0%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
HPXMMP9TIMP2MMP2APOA1F2TIMP4
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
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AlphaFoldAI-predicted · UniProt P02790
View on AlphaFold ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
0.92LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.00Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.71 [0.56–0.92]
RankingsWhere HPX stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #4,678of 20,598
    Most Researched102 · top quartile
  • #8,378of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)0.92
Genes detectedHPX
Sources retrieved10 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
10▼
1
Mitochondrial autophagy and cell survival is regulated by the circadian
PMID: 34085589
Autophagy · 2021
1.00
2
Exploring the mechanism of Xingpi Capsule in diarrhea predominant-irritable bowel syndrome treatment based on multiomics technology.
PMID: 36641976
Phytomedicine · 2023
0.90
3
Proteomic profiling identifies signatures associated with progression of precancerous gastric lesions and risk of early gastric cancer.
PMID: 34818622
EBioMedicine · 2021
0.80
4
Age-, sex- and proximal-distal-resolved multi-omics identifies regulators of intestinal aging in non-human primates.
PMID: 38321225
Nat Aging · 2024
0.70
5
Phthalates promote lenvatinib resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma through the HPX-MAPK pathway.
PMID: 40858030
Ecotoxicol Environ Saf · 2025
0.60