# WEE1

Source: https://onco.cc/targets/wee1/  
OnCo record `wee1` (Target). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

A checkpoint kinase that gives cells time to fix DNA before dividing. Removing it forces damaged cancer cells into a fatal division.

## Summary

WEE1 is a checkpoint kinase that inhibits CDK1 to enforce the G2/M checkpoint, giving cells time to repair DNA before dividing. TP53-mutant cells have lost their G1 checkpoint and depend on WEE1 to avoid entering mitosis with damaged DNA, so inhibiting it forces them into a lethal division. Adavosertib showed activity in uterine serous carcinoma and other TP53-mutant tumours, but its development was paused; azenosertib (ZN-c3) and Debio 0123 continue in ovarian and other cancers. The strongest rationale is in CCNE1-amplified disease, seen in 15 to 20 percent of ovarian cancers, where TP53 mutation is also near-universal. Haematological and gastrointestinal toxicity have limited dosing, and no WEE1 inhibitor is yet approved. In plain terms, removing this checkpoint pushes damaged cancer cells into a division they cannot survive.

## Fields

- Kind: Target
- Last checked: 2026-09-04
- Tags: ddr
- Symbol: WEE1
- Class: kinase
- Biology: Inhibits CDK1 to enforce the G2/M checkpoint; TP53-mutant cells depend on it.
- Where found: TP53-mutant, CCNE1-amplified tumours

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wee1-like_protein_kinase
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wee1-like_protein_kinase

## Connected records

- cancers: [Endometrial cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/endometrial/), [Ovarian cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/ovarian/), [p53-abnormal endometrial cancer, including uterine serous carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/endometrial-p53-abnormal/), [Platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer](https://onco.cc/cancers/platinum-sensitive-ovarian-cancer/), [Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC)](https://onco.cc/cancers/tnbc/), [Uterine carcinosarcoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/uterine-carcinosarcoma/)
- drugs: [Azenosertib](https://onco.cc/drugs/azenosertib/)
- companies: [Acrivon Therapeutics](https://onco.cc/companies/acrivon-therapeutics/), [Debiopharm](https://onco.cc/companies/debiopharm/), [Zentalis Pharmaceuticals](https://onco.cc/companies/zentalis-pharmaceuticals/)
- pathways: [Circadian control](https://onco.cc/pathways/circadian-control/), [DNA damage response & homologous recombination](https://onco.cc/pathways/ddr/), [DNA replication stress](https://onco.cc/pathways/replication-stress/), [Double-strand break repair: HR versus end joining](https://onco.cc/pathways/homologous-recombination-repair/), [p53 / RB / cell-cycle checkpoint](https://onco.cc/pathways/p53-cell-cycle/), [Synthetic lethality: paired dependencies](https://onco.cc/pathways/synthetic-lethality-map/), [The cell-cycle engine (cyclins & CDKs)](https://onco.cc/pathways/cell-cycle-engine-cdks/), [The p53 network (guardian of the genome)](https://onco.cc/pathways/p53-mdm2-axis/)
- technologies: [Synthetic lethality approaches](https://onco.cc/technologies/synthetic-lethality-approaches/)
- terms: [Cell cycle](https://onco.cc/terms/cell-cycle/), [Checkpoint (two meanings)](https://onco.cc/terms/checkpoint/)

---
JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/wee1.json