Claudin 18.2
A tight-junction protein normally hidden in the stomach lining that becomes exposed in gastric and pancreatic cancers.
CLDN18.2 is normally buried in tight junctions of gastric mucosa; malignant transformation exposes it on the cell surface. Zolbetuximab (Vyloy) is approved with chemotherapy in CLDN18.2-positive gastric cancer. ADCs (CMG901/AZD0901, XNW27011), CAR-T (satricabtagene autoleucel, CT041), and bispecifics are in late-stage development.
- Target · the protein and the cell it sits on
- Drug · antibody, small molecule, cell or radioligand
- Effect · signal, damage or kill
In plain words · A tight-junction protein normally hidden in the stomach lining that becomes exposed in gastric and pancreatic cancers.
- 1 · What it is
A tight-junction protein normally hidden in the stomach lining that becomes exposed in gastric and pancreatic cancers.
- 2 · What goes wrong in cancer
Splice isoform 18.2; expressed in ~30-40% of gastric/GEJ adenocarcinomas and a subset of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.
- 3 · How drugs use it
3 products aim at Claudin 18.2: antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates and cell therapies. 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
Splice isoform 18.2; expressed in ~30-40% of gastric/GEJ adenocarcinomas and a subset of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.
- Gastric/GEJ adenocarcinoma
- Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
- Biliary
How common it is, by cancer
| Cancer | Prevalence | Measure | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma | 20-60% | IHC, any expression | Wide range across series | Wikipedia |
| Gastric & gastro-oesophageal junction cancer | 35-40% | IHC 2+/3+ in >=75% of cells (zolbetuximab definition) | SPOTLIGHT/GLOW screening | Wikipedia |
Approximate, population-level figures; the measure column says what was counted. Ranges show the midpoint as a bar.
Satricabtagene autoleucel (satri-cel) is the first CAR-T therapy approved for a solid tumour (gastric cancer), in China.
Sonesitatug vedotin is a Claudin 18.2 ADC in phase 3 for gastric cancer, licensed by AstraZeneca from KYM Biosciences.
Zolbetuximab is the first drug against Claudin 18.2, a protein exposed on stomach cancer cells. Added to chemotherapy it extends survival by two to three months; nausea is the price.
Latest papers
topQuery for this target: (TITLE:"Claudin 18.2" OR ABSTRACT:"Claudin 18.2" OR TITLE:"CLDN18" OR ABSTRACT:"CLDN18") 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 Claudin 18.2, not a curated reading list.
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