Gelsolin/villin cytoskeleton proteins

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Gelsolin/villin cytoskeleton proteins

Unless otherwise stated all data on this page refer to the human proteins. Gene information is provided for human (Hs), mouse (Mm) and rat (Rn).

Overview

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Gelsolin/villin superfamily proteins are key regulators of actin organization and cytoskeletal rearrangement [2,5]. The human genome encodes 8 of these proteins: CapG (CAPG), supervillin (SVIL), scinderin (SCIN), gelsolin (GSN), FLII actin remodeling protein (FLII), villin 1 (VIL1), advillin (AVIL) and villin-like (VILL). The family members contain between three and six repeats of a conserved gelsolin homology (GH) domain [4].

Targets

advillin Show summary »« Hide summary

Target Id

3340

Nomenclature

advillin

Genes

AVIL (Hs), Avil (Mm), Avil (Rn)

Ensembl ID

ENSG00000135407 (Hs), ENSMUSG00000025432 (Mm), ENSRNOG00000050419 (Rn)

UniProtKB AC

O75366 (Hs), O88398 (Mm), Q9WU06 (Rn)

Inhibitors

compound A [PMID: 41604465] (Binding) pK_d ~5.2 [6]

Comment

The advillin protein exhibits actin filament and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate binding activities, with roles in actin cytoskeleton organisation and in the development of neuronal cells that form ganglia. It has been proposed as an oncogene in glioblastoma (GBM) [7-8] and as a molecular target for drug development for GBM [3,6] and other solid tumours [1].

References

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1. Cornelison R, Marrah L, Fierti A, Piczak C, Glowczyk M, Tajammal A, Lynch S, Li H. (2023) The Potential for Targeting AVIL and Other Actin-Binding Proteins in Rhabdomyosarcoma. Int J Mol Sci, 24 (18). [PMID:37762498]

2. Ghoshdastider U, Popp D, Burtnick LD, Robinson RC. (2013) The expanding superfamily of gelsolin homology domain proteins. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken), 70 (11): 775-95. [PMID:24155256]

3. Li H, Xie H. (2020) Compounds and methods for regulating, limiting, or inhibiting avil expression. Patent number: US20200316063A1. Assignee: UVA Licensing and Ventures Group. Priority date: 26/10/2018. Publication date: 08/10/2020.

4. Nag S, Larsson M, Robinson RC, Burtnick LD. (2013) Gelsolin: the tail of a molecular gymnast. Cytoskeleton (Hoboken), 70 (7): 360-84. [PMID:23749648]

5. Silacci P, Mazzolai L, Gauci C, Stergiopulos N, Yin HL, Hayoz D. (2004) Gelsolin superfamily proteins: key regulators of cellular functions. Cell Mol Life Sci, 61 (19-20): 2614-23. [PMID:15526166]

6. Xie Z, Janczyk PŁ, Cornelison R, Lynch S, Glowczyk-Gluc M, Leifer B, Wang Y, Hahn P, Dooley JD, Fierti A et al.. (2026) A first-in-class small-molecule inhibitor targeting AVIL exhibits safety and antitumor efficacy in preclinical models of glioblastoma. Sci Transl Med, 18 (834): eadt1211. [PMID:41604465]

7. Xie Z, Janczyk PŁ, Zhang Y, Liu A, Shi X, Singh S, Facemire L, Kubow K, Li Z, Jia Y et al.. (2020) A cytoskeleton regulator AVIL drives tumorigenesis in glioblastoma. Nat Commun, 11 (1): 3457. [PMID:32651364]

8. Xie Z, Li H. (2020) The discovery of AVIL as a bona fide oncogene in glioblastoma. Mol Cell Oncol, 7 (6): 1804309. [PMID:33241106]

How to cite this family page

Database page citation:

Gelsolin/villin cytoskeleton proteins. Accessed on 27/04/2026. IUPHAR/BPS Guide to PHARMACOLOGY, http://www.guidetopharmacology.org/GRAC/FamilyDisplayForward?familyId=1125.

Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY citation:

Alexander SPH, Gibb AJ, Kelly E, Mathie AA, Peach CJ, Veale EL, Cidlowski JA, Davenport AP, Fabbro D, Spedding M, Striessnig J, Armstrong JF, Buneman OP, Faccenda E, Harding SD, Southan C, Davies JA et al. (2025) The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2025/26: Introduction and Other Protein Targets. Br J Pharmacol. 182: S1-S23.