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GeneE
5 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 15 days ago
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WFDC13
WAP four-disulfide core domain 13
Chromosome 20 · 20q13.12
NCBI Gene: 164237Ensembl: ENSG00000168634.5HGNC: HGNC:16131UniProt: Q8IUB5
7PubMed Papers
18Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
protein bindingantibacterial humoral responseserine-type endopeptidase inhibitor activityGO:0005615actinic keratosissebaceous of Jadassohn nevussquamous cell carcinomaocular hypotension
✦AI Summary

WFDC13 (WAP four-disulfide core domain 13) is a putative serine-type endopeptidase inhibitor with roles in reproductive function and innate immunity. Located on chromosome 20, WFDC13 is part of a highly conserved syntenic gene cluster of 11 reproductive tract-specific genes that have maintained functional significance across 96 million years of mammalian evolution 1. CRISPR/Cas9 knockout studies demonstrate that WFDC13 contributes to male fertility, with deletion of WFDC13 (alongside Wfdc9, Wfdc10, and Wfdc11) resulting in infertility due to defects in sperm motility and increased sperm death, despite normal spermatogenesis 1. WFDC13 is region-specifically expressed in the male reproductive tract, with expression identified in the epididymis and showing age-related changes during reproductive aging 2. During inflammatory conditions, WFDC13 expression is dynamically regulated by lipopolysaccharide-induced epididymitis through NF-κB-dependent mechanisms, suggesting roles in innate immune responses 3. Beyond reproduction, WFDC13 expression is regulated in colon cancer through the PAN3-AS1/miR-423-5p/WFDC13 axis and is associated with altered immune microenvironments and immunotherapy efficacy 4. These findings indicate WFDC13 functions in both reproductive physiology and immune homeostasis across different tissues.

Sources cited
1
WFDC13 is part of a conserved reproductive tract gene cluster; WFDC13 deletion causes male infertility through sperm motility defects
PMID: 39665756
2
WFDC13 is expressed in the epididymis with age-related expression changes during reproductive aging
PMID: 35211476
3
WFDC13 expression is upregulated in response to LPS-induced epididymitis through NF-κB-dependent mechanisms
PMID: 33034631
4
WFDC13 expression is regulated in colon cancer and associated with immune microenvironment and immunotherapy response
PMID: 41502505
⚠Limited data available — This gene has 4 indexed publications. Summary and analysis may be incomplete.
Disease Associationsⓘ18
actinic keratosisOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
sebaceous of Jadassohn nevusOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
ocular hypotensionOpen Targets
0.03Suggestive
chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
psoriasisOpen Targets
0.02Suggestive
pancreatic adenocarcinomaOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.01Suggestive
bladder transitional cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
melanomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
diabetes mellitusOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
nonpapillary renal cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
ovarian carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
clear cell renal carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
colorectal cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
esophageal cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
lung cancerOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
uterine corpus endometrial carcinomaOpen Targets
0.00Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
WFDC10AShared pathway100%WFDC5Shared pathway100%WFDC10BShared pathway100%WFDC11Protein interaction83%SPINT4Protein interaction77%WFDC9Protein interaction77%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Lung
100%
Brain
67%
Bone Marrow
33%
Ovary
33%
Heart
0%
Liver
0%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
WFDC13WFDC10AWFDC5WFDC10BWFDC11SPINT4WFDC9
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
AlphaFoldAI-predicted · UniProt Q8IUB5
View on AlphaFold ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
1.03LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.09Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.52 [0.28–1.03]
RankingsWhere WFDC13 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #17,985of 20,598
    Most Researched7
  • #10,140of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)1.03
Genes detectedWFDC13
Sources retrieved5 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
5
1
Large-scale CRISPR/Cas9 deletions within the WFDC gene cluster uncover gene functionality and critical roles in mammalian reproduction.
PMID: 39665756
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A · 2024
1.00
2
Anatomical Transcriptome Atlas of the Male Mouse Reproductive System During Aging.
PMID: 35211476
Front Cell Dev Biol · 2021
0.80
3
Lipopolysaccharide-induced epididymitis modifies the transcriptional profile of Wfdc genes in mice†.
PMID: 33034631
Biol Reprod · 2021
0.60
4
Involvement of DPP9 in gene fusions in serous ovarian carcinoma.
PMID: 28893231
BMC Cancer · 2017
0.40
5
Pan-Cancer Analysis of Enhancer-Induced PAN3-AS1 and Experimental Validation as a WFDC13-Promoting Factor in Colon Cancer.
PMID: 41502505
Oncol Res · 2025
0.20