# SCN4A

Source: https://onco.cc/targets/scn4a/  
OnCo record `scn4a` (Target). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

SCN4A (Sodium channel protein type 4 subunit alpha) is a gene. The public catalogues list it as a drug target, and an approved or late-stage drug is recorded against it.

## Summary

Pore-forming subunit of Nav1.4, a voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channel that directly mediates the depolarising phase of action potentials in excitable membranes. Navs, also called VGSCs (voltage-gated sodium channels) or VDSCs (voltage-dependent sodium channels), operate by switching between closed and open conformations depending on the voltage difference across the membrane. In the open conformation they allow Na(+) ions to selectively pass through the pore, along their electrochemical gradient.

Open Targets scores its association with cancer at 0.56 (direct and indirect evidence; datatypes literature 0.74, animal model 0.68, genetic association 0.09, clinical 0.86).

## Fields

- Kind: Target
- Last checked: 2026-09-23
- Also known as: sodium voltage-gated channel alpha subunit 4; Sodium channel protein type 4 subunit alpha; Nav1.4; SkM1; HYKPP
- Tags: cancer-genes-wave
- Symbol: SCN4A
- Class: other
- Biology: Pore-forming subunit of Nav1.4, a voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channel that directly mediates the depolarising phase of action potentials in excitable membranes. Navs, also called VGSCs (voltage-gated sodium channels) or VDSCs (voltage-dependent sodium channels), operate by switching between closed and open conformations depending on the voltage difference across the membrane. In the open conformation they allow Na(+) ions to selectively pass through the pore, along their electrochemical gradient. The influx of Na+ ions provokes membrane depolarisation, initiating the propagation of electrical signals throughout cells and tissues. Highly expressed in skeletal muscles, Nav1.4 generates the action potential crucial for muscle contraction. Location: Cell membrane (UniProt). Locus 17q23.3 (HGNC).

## Notes

- Written by scripts/fetch-cancer-genes.ts from CIViC, Open Targets, IntOGen, HGNC and UniProt; the function text is UniProt's, condensed and in UK spelling. Roles: Open Targets known-drug datatype score 0.86. Evidence tier "approved-drug" is the strongest of those signals.
- Prevalence not recorded: none of the sources gives a positivity rate.

## Sources

- HGNC HGNC:10591: https://www.genenames.org/data/gene-symbol-report/#!/hgnc_id/HGNC:10591
- UniProt P35499: https://www.uniprot.org/uniprotkb/P35499/entry
- NCBI Gene 6329: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/6329
- Ensembl ENSG00000007314: https://www.ensembl.org/Homo_sapiens/Gene/Summary?g=ENSG00000007314

## Connected records

- collections: [Open Targets Platform](https://onco.cc/collections/open-targets/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/scn4a.json