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10 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 15 days ago
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MAGEA4
MAGE family member A4
Chromosome X · Xq28
NCBI Gene: 4103Ensembl: ENSG00000147381.13HGNC: HGNC:6802UniProt: P43358
83PubMed Papers
20Diseases
1Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
FUNCTIONAL ROLE
Highly Constrained
CLINICAL
FDA Approved Target
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
negative regulation of apoptotic processprotein bindingpositive regulation of cell cyclenucleussynovial sarcomaneoplasmnon-small cell lung carcinomaesophageal squamous cell carcinoma
✦AI Summary

MAGEA4 is a cancer/testis antigen that functions as an oncogene promoting tumor development through multiple mechanisms. Primarily, MAGEA4 regulates cell proliferation by inhibiting G1 phase cell cycle arrest and negatively regulating p53-mediated apoptosis 1. At the molecular level, MAGEA4 forms complexes with TRIM28 to accelerate P53 degradation via ubiquitination 2. MAGEA4 also stabilizes RAD18 protein, facilitating recruitment of Y-family DNA polymerases to enable DNA replication under damage conditions, thereby supporting cancer cell survival 2. MAGEA4 expression is upregulated by transcription factors including TWIST1, which binds E-boxes in the MAGEA4 promoter 3. Additionally, a MAGEA4 antisense lncRNA (MAGEA4-AS1) enhances MK2 signaling through p53 interaction, promoting proliferation and metastasis in oral squamous cell carcinoma 4. Clinically, MAGEA4 is highly expressed in multiple solid tumors but minimally expressed in normal tissues except testis and placenta 2. High MAGEA4 expression associates with poor prognosis 2. As a therapeutic target, affinity-enhanced MAGE-A4-specific TCR-engineered autologous T cells (afamitresgene autoleucel) demonstrated clinical efficacy in heavily pre-treated patients with MAGE-A4-expressing synovial sarcoma and myxoid round cell liposarcoma, achieving a 37% overall response rate with acceptable safety 5. These TCR-T cell immunotherapies represent a promising approach for targeting MAGE-A4-positive solid tumors 6.

Sources cited
1
MAGEA4 inhibits G1 phase cell cycle arrest and negatively regulates p53-mediated apoptosis
PMID: 22842486
2
MAGEA4 promotes tumorigenesis through P53 degradation via TRIM28 complex, RAD18 stabilization for DNA damage tolerance, and is expressed in multiple tumors with low normal tissue expression
PMID: 39905312
3
TWIST1 upregulates MAGEA4 expression through binding to E-boxes in the MAGEA4 promoter
PMID: 27533647
4
MAGEA4-AS1 lncRNA enhances p53-MK2 signaling to promote proliferation and metastasis in oral squamous cell carcinoma
PMID: 39249547
5
Afamitresgene autoleucel (affinity-enhanced MAGE-A4-specific TCR-T cells) achieved 37% overall response rate in MAGE-A4-expressing synovial sarcoma patients
PMID: 38554725
6
Phase 1 trial of afamitresgene autoleucel showed 24% overall response rate with early and durable responses in metastatic solid tumors expressing MAGE-A4
PMID: 36624315
7
MAGE-A4 marks all spermatogonia in normal human testis, representing normal tissue expression
PMID: 28827392
Disease Associationsⓘ20
synovial sarcomaOpen Targets
0.37Weak
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.11Weak
non-small cell lung carcinomaOpen Targets
0.09Suggestive
esophageal squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
breast cancerOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
seminomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
oral squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
soft tissue sarcomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
lung adenocarcinomaOpen Targets
0.06Suggestive
melanomaOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
cancerOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
triple-negative breast cancerOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
adenocarcinomaOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
esophageal cancerOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
ovarian cancerOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
hepatocellular carcinomaOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
skin squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
lung cancerOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
liposarcomaOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Drug Targets1
AFAMITRESGENE AUTOLEUCELApproved
Melanoma-associated antigen 4 binding agent
synovial sarcoma
Related Genes
RAD18Protein interaction89%CTAG1BProtein interaction86%MAGEA10Protein interaction86%HLA-AProtein interaction86%SSX2BProtein interaction77%TRIM69Protein interaction76%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Bone Marrow
100%
Ovary
0%
Liver
0%
Brain
0%
Heart
0%
Lung
0%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
MAGEA4RAD18CTAG1BMAGEA10HLA-ASSX2BTRIM69
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
PDB6TRN · 1.35 Å · X-ray
View on RCSB ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
0.35Highly Constrained
pLIⓘ
0.99Intolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.07 [0.03–0.35]
RankingsWhere MAGEA4 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #5,738of 20,598
    Most Researched83
  • #963of 1,025
    FDA-Approved Drug Targets1
  • #1,505of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)0.35 · top 10%
Genes detectedMAGEA4
Sources retrieved10 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
10▼
1
Afamitresgene autoleucel for advanced synovial sarcoma and myxoid round cell liposarcoma (SPEARHEAD-1): an international, open-label, phase 2 trial.
PMID: 38554725
Lancet · 2024
1.00
2
Preclinical evaluation of an affinity-enhanced MAGE-A4-specific T-cell receptor for adoptive T-cell therapy.
PMID: 32002290
Oncoimmunology · 2020
0.90
3
Exploring the role and mechanisms of MAGEA4 in tumorigenesis, regulation, and immunotherapy.
PMID: 39905312
Mol Med · 2025
0.80
4
Autologous T cell therapy for MAGE-A4
PMID: 36624315
Nat Med · 2023
0.70
5
TWIST1 upregulates the MAGEA4 oncogene.
PMID: 27533647
Mol Carcinog · 2017
0.60