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10 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 15 days ago
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NAIF1
nuclear apoptosis inducing factor 1
Chromosome 9 · 9q34.11
NCBI Gene: 203245Ensembl: ENSG00000171169.9HGNC: HGNC:25446UniProt: Q69YI7
27PubMed Papers
20Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
protein bindingnegative regulation of cell growthregulation of mitochondrial membrane permeability involved in apoptotic processnucleusneurodegenerative diseaseosteosarcomagastric cancerprostate cancer
✦AI Summary

NAIF1 (Nuclear Apoptosis Inducing Factor 1) is a nuclear protein that functions as a tumor suppressor by inducing apoptosis and inhibiting cancer cell proliferation, migration, and invasion 1. The protein contains a homeodomain-like region and nuclear localization signals, and is conserved across multiple species 1. NAIF1 induces apoptosis primarily through the intrinsic mitochondrial pathway, activating procaspase-9 followed by caspase-3, while decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential 21. The N-terminal 1-90 amino acid domain containing a helix-turn-helix motif is sufficient for apoptotic induction 2. NAIF1 expression is significantly downregulated in multiple cancer types including gastric cancer, osteosarcoma, and prostate cancer, where reduced expression correlates with poor differentiation and advanced tumor stages 23. The protein inhibits cancer cell migration and invasion through MAPK pathway modulation, reducing MMP2/MMP9 expression and inhibiting FAK activation 4. NAIF1 is regulated by several microRNAs including miR-128, miR-125a-5p, and miR-29b, which target its 3'-UTR and suppress its tumor suppressor functions 356. These findings suggest NAIF1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target for cancer treatment.

Sources cited
1
NAIF1 is a nuclear protein with homeodomain-like region that induces apoptosis when overexpressed
PMID: 16378748
2
NAIF1 induces apoptosis through caspase-9 pathway and N-terminal domain is sufficient for apoptosis induction
PMID: 21286669
3
NAIF1 is downregulated in osteosarcoma and regulated by miR-128
PMID: 30407643
4
NAIF1 inhibits cancer cell migration and invasion via MAPK pathways
PMID: 25432142
5
NAIF1 is regulated by miR-125a-5p in prostate cancer
PMID: 26719710
6
NAIF1 is targeted by miR-29b which attenuates apoptosis
PMID: 24965127
Disease Associationsⓘ20
neurodegenerative diseaseOpen Targets
0.23Weak
osteosarcomaOpen Targets
0.07Suggestive
gastric cancerOpen Targets
0.06Suggestive
prostate cancerOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
heart conduction diseaseOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
Parkinson diseaseOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
gliomaOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
cancerOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
non-small cell lung carcinomaOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
prostate carcinomaOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
esophageal carcinomaOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
lung cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
meningeal tuberculosisOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
cervical cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
prostate neoplasmOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
SepsisOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
hepatocellular carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
Hereditary breast cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
OSGIN2Shared pathway100%SERTAD2Shared pathway100%SERTAD3Shared pathway100%OSGIN1Shared pathway100%ST7LShared pathway100%INTS6Protein interaction99%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Bone Marrow
100%
Liver
87%
Lung
68%
Heart
64%
Ovary
58%
Brain
51%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
NAIF1OSGIN2SERTAD2SERTAD3OSGIN1ST7LINTS6
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
AlphaFoldAI-predicted · UniProt Q69YI7
View on AlphaFold ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
1.12LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.00Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.72 [0.47–1.12]
RankingsWhere NAIF1 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #12,611of 20,598
    Most Researched27
  • #11,528of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)1.12
Genes detectedNAIF1
Sources retrieved10 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
10▼
1
NAIF1 is down-regulated in gastric cancer and promotes apoptosis through the caspase-9 pathway in human MKN45 cells.
PMID: 21286669
Oncol Rep · 2011
1.00
2
bta-miR-29b attenuates apoptosis by directly targeting caspase-7 and NAIF1 and suppresses bovine viral diarrhea virus replication in MDBK cells.
PMID: 24965127
Can J Microbiol · 2014
0.90
3
NAIF1 suppresses osteosarcoma progression and is regulated by miR-128.
PMID: 30407643
Cell Biochem Funct · 2018
0.80
4
Overexpression of the novel human gene, nuclear apoptosis-inducing factor 1, induces apoptosis.
PMID: 16378748
Int J Biochem Cell Biol · 2006
0.70
5
[Effects of NAIF1 on biological behavior of esophageal carcinoma cell line EC9706 by using pTet-off system].
PMID: 21315046
Xi Bao Yu Fen Zi Mian Yi Xue Za Zhi · 2011
0.60