MUC16 (CA-125)
The giant mucin that is shed into blood as the CA-125 ovarian cancer marker; its membrane stalk is being targeted by ADCs and T-cell engagers.
MUC16 is a very large transmembrane mucin overexpressed in ovarian (~80%), pancreatic, endometrial and lung cancers; its shed ectodomain is CA-125, used since 1983 for monitoring ovarian cancer. Therapeutics target the membrane-retained stalk: ubamatamab (MUC16×CD3 bispecific, Regeneron) in phase 2 in ovarian cancer, sofituzumab vedotin (ADC) discontinued, MUC16 CAR-T (with IL-12 armouring) in phase 1. Anti-CA-125 vaccines (abagovomab, oregovomab) failed in phase 3, oregovomab most recently in 2024 (FLORA-5).
- Target · the protein and the cell it sits on
- Drug · antibody, small molecule, cell or radioligand
- Effect · signal, damage or kill
In plain words · The giant mucin that is shed into blood as the CA-125 ovarian cancer marker; its membrane stalk is being targeted by ADCs and T-cell engagers.
- 1 · What it is
The giant mucin that is shed into blood as the CA-125 ovarian cancer marker; its membrane stalk is being targeted by ADCs and T-cell engagers.
- 2 · What goes wrong in cancer
22,000-amino-acid mucin with tandem repeats, SEA domains cleaved to release CA-125, and a short cytoplasmic tail; mediates immune evasion (binds Siglec-9, mesothelin), adhesion to mesothelium and metastasis.
- 3 · How drugs use it
No product in this corpus aims at MUC16 (CA-125) yet. Because it sits on the outside of the cell, it can be reached from the bloodstream: antibodies flag the cell, ADCs deliver a toxin, radioligands deliver radiation, and CAR-T or bispecifics bring a T cell.
Biology
22,000-amino-acid mucin with tandem repeats, SEA domains cleaved to release CA-125, and a short cytoplasmic tail; mediates immune evasion (binds Siglec-9, mesothelin), adhesion to mesothelium and metastasis.
- High-grade serous ovarian cancer (~80%)
- Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (~65%)
- Endometrial, lung adenocarcinoma, mesothelioma
- Serum CA-125 in ovarian cancer monitoring
How common it is, by cancer
| Cancer | Prevalence | Measure | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ovarian cancer | 80% | MUC16 expression | doi.org |
Approximate, population-level figures; the measure column says what was counted. Ranges show the midpoint as a bar.
Latest papers
topQuery for this target: (TITLE:"MUC16" OR ABSTRACT:"MUC16" OR TITLE:"CA-125" OR ABSTRACT:"CA-125") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about MUC16 (CA-125), not a curated reading list.
Pages like this
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