PNOC

gene
On this page

Also known as PPNOCN/OFQNOP

Summary

PNOC (prepronociceptin, HGNC:9163) is a protein-coding gene on chromosome 8p21.1, encoding Prepronociceptin (Q13519). Ligand of the opioid receptor-like receptor OPRL1.

This gene encodes a preproprotein that is proteolytically processed to generate multiple protein products. These products include nociceptin, nocistatin, and orphanin FQ2 (OFQ2). Nociceptin, also known as orphanin FQ, is a 17-amino acid neuropeptide that binds to the nociceptin receptor to induce increased pain sensitivity, and may additionally regulate body temperature, learning and memory, and hunger. Another product of the encoded preproprotein, nocistatin, may inhibit the effects of nociceptin.

Source: NCBI Gene 5368 — RefSeq curated summary.

At a glance

  • GWAS associations: 3
  • Clinical variants (ClinVar): 34 total
  • MANE Select transcript: NM_006228

Identifiers

Gene identifiers

FieldValue
HGNC IDHGNC:9163
Approved symbolPNOC
Nameprepronociceptin
Location8p21.1
Locus typegene with protein product
StatusApproved
AliasesPPNOC, N/OFQ, NOP
Ensembl geneENSG00000168081
Ensembl biotypeprotein_coding
OMIM601459
Entrez5368

Gene structure

Transcript identifiers

Ensembl transcripts: 5 — 4 protein_coding, 1 retained_intron

ENST00000301908, ENST00000518479, ENST00000519592, ENST00000522209, ENST00000923262

RefSeq mRNA: 2 — MANE Select: NM_006228 NM_001284244, NM_006228

CCDS: CCDS6066, CCDS64862

Canonical transcript exons

ENST00000301908 — 4 exons

ExonStartEnd
ENSE000011201732832913528329283
ENSE000013355632831726828317316
ENSE000035786082833904028339491
ENSE000038428772834294228343351

Expression profiles

Bgee: expression breadth ubiquitous, 167 present calls, max score 93.98.

FANTOM5 (CAGE): breadth broad, TPM avg 3.4313 / max 1212.6098, expressed in 250 samples.

FANTOM5 promoters (3 alternative TSS)

Promoter IDTPM avgSamples expressed
881912.4689168
881930.870175
881900.092243

Top tissues by expression

273 total, by Bgee expression score (0-100, higher = more expressed):

TissueAnatomy IDExpression scoreQuality
male germ line stem cell (sensu Vertebrata) in testisCL:0000089 ∩ UBERON:000047393.98gold quality
germinal epithelium of ovaryUBERON:000130484.94gold quality
lymph nodeUBERON:000002984.00gold quality
prefrontal cortexUBERON:000045181.49gold quality
spleenUBERON:000210681.49gold quality
granulocyteCL:000009479.35gold quality
vermiform appendixUBERON:000115479.33gold quality
epithelium of nasopharynxUBERON:000195178.80silver quality
bone marrow cellCL:000209278.35gold quality
cingulate cortexUBERON:000302778.04gold quality
anterior cingulate cortexUBERON:000983577.91gold quality
leukocyteCL:000073876.41gold quality
endothelial cellCL:000011576.18silver quality
monocyteCL:000057675.98gold quality
mononuclear cellCL:000084275.95gold quality
frontal cortexUBERON:000187075.67gold quality
neocortexUBERON:000195075.65gold quality
Brodmann (1909) area 46UBERON:000648375.47silver quality
dorsolateral prefrontal cortexUBERON:000983475.14gold quality
frontal poleUBERON:000279575.12silver quality
bloodUBERON:000017874.02gold quality
right frontal lobeUBERON:000281073.66gold quality
Brodmann (1909) area 10UBERON:001354173.24silver quality
bone marrowUBERON:000237172.58gold quality
caecumUBERON:000115372.53gold quality
cerebral cortexUBERON:000095672.15gold quality
Brodmann (1909) area 9UBERON:001354071.85gold quality
ganglionic eminenceUBERON:000402371.40gold quality
paraflocculusUBERON:000535171.33gold quality
primary visual cortexUBERON:000243670.93gold quality

Single-cell (SCXA)

Detected in 2 experiment(s), a significant marker in 1.

ExperimentMarker?Max mean expression
E-ANND-3yes22.74
E-MTAB-8410no0.77

Regulation

Is transcription factor: no

Upstream regulators (CollecTRI, top): CREB1, PTF1A, SP1

miRNA regulators (miRDB)

41 targeting PNOC, top 30 by miRDB confidence (max_score; target_count = how many genes the miRNA targets in total — lower means more specific):

miRNAMax scoreAvg scoremiRNA target_count
HSA-MIR-4283100.0066.422097
HSA-MIR-453199.9969.703181
HSA-MIR-34A-5P99.9971.211784
HSA-MIR-449A99.9971.051776
HSA-MIR-520D-5P99.9873.344883
HSA-MIR-524-5P99.9873.434882
HSA-MIR-34C-5P99.9770.451577
HSA-MIR-449B-5P99.9770.261580
HSA-MIR-4725-3P99.9669.532520
HSA-MIR-6780B-5P99.9669.602562
HSA-MIR-6825-5P99.9669.813431
HSA-MIR-185-3P99.9567.011743
HSA-MIR-427199.8868.322244
HSA-MIR-3934-3P99.7665.511351
HSA-MIR-199A-3P99.7570.48929
HSA-MIR-199B-3P99.7570.48929
HSA-MIR-3129-5P99.7570.46914
HSA-MIR-451699.6167.783390
HSA-MIR-448999.5065.56785
HSA-MIR-203A-3P99.4970.562806
HSA-MIR-6743-5P99.4863.60721
HSA-MIR-361299.4566.021333
HSA-MIR-65099.4565.771309
HSA-MIR-569399.2466.671106
HSA-MIR-312599.1468.492269
HSA-MIR-443499.1067.011984
HSA-MIR-570399.1067.092053
HSA-MIR-391698.9968.042155
HSA-MIR-6859-5P98.9968.072049
HSA-MIR-93698.8770.511124

Literature-anchored findings (GeneRIF, showing 29)

  • Peripheral blood levels are elevated in Wilson disease (PMID:12812047)
  • results show that nociceptin/NociR is present and functional in human neutrophils, and the results identify a novel dialogue pathway between neural and immune tissues (PMID:12950177)
  • The presence of two different forms of mature nocistatin (NST-17 and NST-30) and a possible N-terminal methionine cleaved NST-29 have been confirmed by both radioimmunoassay and mass spectrometry. (PMID:16043263)
  • Two SNPs in PNOC showed marginal association with alcoholism and one with illicit drug dependence. (PMID:17910740)
  • Peripheral blood mononuclear cells transcribe pre-pro-nociception/orphaninFQ. (PMID:18292431)
  • Our results support the concept postulating that chronic ethanol consumption and withdrawal downregulate the PNOC/OPRL1 system, which critically controls alcohol intake. (PMID:19501074)
  • Unstable angina is associated with a significant increase in circulating nociceptin/orphanin FQ levels unrelated to intervening transient myocardial ischemia or hemodynamic changes. (PMID:19560501)
  • data obtained from neocortex of epileptic patients provide strong evidence that temporal lobe epilepsy is associated with alterations in mu opioid and nociceptin receptor binding and signal transduction mechanisms downstream of these receptors (PMID:19573600)
  • Results showed that vigorous and prolonged hyperventilation changes plasma nociceptin/orphanin FQ levels due to the direct effects of hypocapnic alkalosis or to different sympatho-adrenergic system responses. (PMID:20100531)
  • PNOC expression level was 2.99 times higher in vitiligo involved skin when compared to healthy control skin. (PMID:20888736)
  • chronic ischemic conditions of atherosclerotic origin are associated with significantly lower plasma nociceptin levels (PMID:21310194)
  • activation of NFkappaB by OFQ/Nociceptin suggests a likely mechanism for its modulation of the central nervous and immune systems. (PMID:21547539)
  • A high expression of nociceptin in adenomyosis may be one of the casual factors of dysmenorrhea. The severity of dysmenorrhea is positively correlated with the expression of nociceptin in eutopic endometrial tissue. (PMID:21600132)
  • The presence of Orphanin, Oxytocin, ANP, eNOS and iNOS proteins was identified in the human umbilical cord.[Orphanin] (PMID:21744319)
  • Strong expression of PNOC was seen in neoplastic neurons of 7/7 brainstem gangliogliomas, but was significantly weaker in non-brainstem GGs. (PMID:22706982)
  • REVIEW: intracellular localization and physiological role of nociceptin and nocistatin (PMID:23454174)
  • Data suggest that nociceptin and nociceptin receptor evolved as one of 4 opioid receptor systems in vertebrates; this system exhibits both analgesic and hyperalgesic effects. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677768)
  • Data suggest that nociceptin plays a crucial role in progress of meiosis during spermatogenesis. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677772)
  • Opioid neuropeptide systems are important mediators of ovarian steroid signaling that regulate reproduction in female; data suggest that nociceptin and nociceptin receptor system in arcuate nucleus of hypothalamus is such a system. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677773)
  • Data suggest that both nociceptin and nocistatin inhibit myometrial contractions and may play roles in perception of pain during delivery. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677774)
  • Data suggest that the nociceptin/nociceptin receptor system is involved in modulation of the immune response and in pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677775)
  • Data suggest that the nociceptin/nociceptin receptor system is involved in modulation of psychological and inflammatory stress responses and in pathogenesis of anxiety. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677776)
  • Data suggest that interaction between the nociceptin/nociceptin receptor system and the orexin/orexin receptor system in neurons of the hypothalamus positively and negatively modulate complex and integrated responses to stress. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677777)
  • Data suggest that nociceptin/nociceptin receptor signaling in neurons of the hippocampus modulate learning and memory. [REVIEW] (PMID:25677778)
  • findings suggest that SNPs in opioid receptors and the PNOC genes are associated with NAS severity. (PMID:26233486)
  • Study presents evidence suggesting that the PNOC and OPRL1 are dysregulated in suicide completers, thereby potentially contributing to impaired emotional and behavioral control and, ultimately, to the suicidal crisis (PMID:26349406)
  • The presence of the PNOC rs732636 A allele was associated with the worse Neonatal abstinence syndrome outcomes in infants. (PMID:26791055)
  • found differences in Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome outcomes depending on PNOC and COMT SNP genotype. (PMID:27983768)
  • PNOC Expressed by B Cells in Cholangiocarcinoma Was Survival Related and LAIR2 Could Be a T Cell Exhaustion Biomarker in Tumor Microenvironment: Characterization of Immune Microenvironment Combining Single-Cell and Bulk Sequencing Technology. (PMID:33841428)

Cross-species orthologs

4 orthologs

OrganismSymbolGene ID
danio_reriopnocbENSDARG00000024189
danio_reriopnocaENSDARG00000025024
mus_musculusPnocENSMUSG00000045731
rattus_norvegicusPnocENSRNOG00000014231

Paralogs (2): PDYN (ENSG00000101327), PENK (ENSG00000181195)

Protein

Protein identifiers

PrepronociceptinQ13519 (reviewed: Q13519)

All UniProt accessions (2): Q13519, E7EVP0

UniProt curated annotations — full annotation on UniProt →

Function. Ligand of the opioid receptor-like receptor OPRL1. It may act as a transmitter in the brain by modulating nociceptive and locomotor behavior. May be involved in neuronal differentiation and development. Blocks nociceptin action in pain transmission by inhibiting nociceptin-induced hyperalgesia and allodynia. Has potent analgesic activity.

Subcellular location. Secreted.

Tissue specificity. Predominantly expressed in the brain and spinal cord. Also expressed and secreted by peripheral blood neutrophils following degranulation.

Post-translational modifications. Specific enzymatic cleavages at paired basic residues probably yield other active peptides besides nociceptin. The N-terminal domain contains 6 conserved cysteines thought to be involved in disulfide bonding and/or processing.

Similarity. Belongs to the opioid neuropeptide precursor family.

Isoforms (2)

UniProt IDNamesCanonical?
Q13519-11yes
Q13519-22

RefSeq proteins (2): NP_001271173, NP_006219* (*=MANE)

Domains & families (InterPro)

IDNameType
IPR002367NociceptinFamily
IPR006024Opioid_neupeptFamily

Pfam: PF01160

UniProt features (9 total): peptide 3, propeptide 2, signal peptide 1, splice variant 1, strand 1, helix 1

Structure

Experimental structures (PDB)

1 structures.

PDBMethodResolution (Å)
8F7XELECTRON MICROSCOPY3.28

Predicted structure (AlphaFold)

ModelpLDDTFraction very-high
AF-Q13519-F163.160.00

Antibody-complex structures (SAbDab): 18F7X

Function

Pathways and Gene Ontology

Reactome pathways

2 pathways

IDPathway
R-HSA-375276Peptide ligand-binding receptors
R-HSA-418594G alpha (i) signalling events

MSigDB gene sets: 240 (showing top): GOBP_RESPONSE_TO_NITROGEN_COMPOUND, GOBP_RESPONSE_TO_ETHANOL, YAATNRNNNYNATT_UNKNOWN, GOBP_ACID_SECRETION, MODULE_274, GOBP_BEHAVIOR, GOBP_RESPONSE_TO_COCAINE, NKX25_02, GOBP_REGULATION_OF_SYNAPTIC_TRANSMISSION_GLUTAMATERGIC, LFA1_Q6, GOBP_ADULT_BEHAVIOR, AREB6_03, GOBP_NEUROTRANSMITTER_TRANSPORT, TGACCTY_ERR1_Q2, GOBP_CELLULAR_RESPONSE_TO_OXYGEN_CONTAINING_COMPOUND

GO Biological Process (7): signal transduction (GO:0007165), neuropeptide signaling pathway (GO:0007218), chemical synaptic transmission (GO:0007268), neuron-neuron synaptic transmission (GO:0007270), female pregnancy (GO:0007565), sensory perception (GO:0007600), sensory perception of pain (GO:0019233)

GO Molecular Function (4): opioid peptide activity (GO:0001515), neuropeptide hormone activity (GO:0005184), opioid receptor binding (GO:0031628), receptor ligand activity (GO:0048018)

GO Cellular Component (7): extracellular region (GO:0005576), plasma membrane (GO:0005886), dendrite (GO:0030425), neuronal cell body (GO:0043025), axon terminus (GO:0043679), synaptic membrane (GO:0097060), synapse (GO:0045202)

Reactome top-level categories

Rollup of top-2 pathways:

CategoryPathways
Class A/1 (Rhodopsin-like receptors)1
GPCR downstream signalling1

GO top-level categories

Rollup of top GO terms by namespace:

CategoryTerms
cell communication1
cellular process1
signaling1
regulation of cellular process1
cellular response to stimulus1
G protein-coupled receptor signaling pathway1
anterograde trans-synaptic signaling1
chemical synaptic transmission1
multi-organism reproductive process1
multi-multicellular organism process1
nervous system process1
sensory perception1
receptor ligand activity1
hormone activity1
neuropeptide activity1
G protein-coupled receptor binding1
signaling receptor binding1
signal transduction1
signaling receptor activator activity1
cellular anatomical structure1
membrane1
cell periphery1
neuron projection1
dendritic tree1
somatodendritic compartment1
cell body1
neuron projection terminus1
presynapse1
distal axon1
synapse1
plasma membrane region1
cell junction1

Protein interactions and networks

STRING

1334 interactions, top by confidence (×1000):

Protein AProtein BPartner UniProtScore
PNOCPDYNP01213964
PNOCPOMCP01189822
PNOCOPRM1P35372820
PNOCNAT1P18440767
PNOCCHRNA2Q15822757
PNOCNPYP01303747
PNOCCRHP06850743
PNOCTAC1P20366741
PNOCGALP22466737
PNOCSPINT2O43291720
PNOCOPRD1P41143711
PNOCHCRTO43612663
PNOCPPP3CCP48454654
PNOCPMCHP20382638
PNOCNPFFO15130621

IntAct

5 interactions, top by confidence:

ABTypeScore
PNOCCETN3psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.530
PNOCNUP155psi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.530
Ppsi-mi:“MI:0914”(association)0.350

BioGRID (16): PNOC (Biochemical Activity), PNOC (Reconstituted Complex), PNOC (Reconstituted Complex), PDP1 (Affinity Capture-MS), WDTC1 (Affinity Capture-MS), LNPEP (Affinity Capture-MS), FAM175B (Affinity Capture-MS), WDFY2 (Affinity Capture-MS), DCAF6 (Affinity Capture-MS), HSPA5 (Affinity Capture-MS), NUP155 (Affinity Capture-MS), BABAM1 (Affinity Capture-MS), CETN3 (Affinity Capture-MS), CDC26 (Affinity Capture-MS), TIMM10B (Affinity Capture-MS)

ESM2 similar proteins: A0A1L2F565, B3IWF7, B3IWF9, D3Z752, E2E4E4, F1QQI2, I7C2V3, M0R8L2, O46540, O62647, O73812, O93448, P01146, P01257, P01258, P07501, P0DQY8, P10093, P12272, P12969, P15743, P22858, P27104, P47851, P51918, P52211, P58073, P63152, P63292, P70160, P81564, P81872, Q0VBW8, Q0VC44, Q13519, Q5H8A3, Q60549, Q64387, Q75V94, Q75V95

Diamond homologs: O62647, Q13519, Q62923, Q64387, P55791

SIGNOR signaling

0 interactions.

Disease & clinical

Clinical variants and AI predictions

ClinVar

34 variants total. Per-class counts are floors (≥ shown; pagination cap):

ClassificationCount (floor)
Pathogenic0
Likely pathogenic0
Uncertain significance26
Likely benign1
Benign1

Top pathogenic / likely-pathogenic (0)

SpliceAI

610 predictions. Top by Δscore:

VariantEffectΔscore
8:28339336:G:GTdonor_gain1.0000
8:28317312:CTCAG:Cdonor_loss0.9900
8:28317313:TCAG:Tdonor_loss0.9900
8:28317314:CAGGT:Cdonor_loss0.9900
8:28317316:GGTA:Gdonor_loss0.9900
8:28317317:G:Cdonor_loss0.9900
8:28317318:T:Gdonor_loss0.9900
8:28339035:TGCA:Tacceptor_loss0.9900
8:28339036:GCA:Gacceptor_loss0.9900
8:28339039:G:GCacceptor_loss0.9900
8:28339324:G:GTdonor_gain0.9900
8:28339362:G:GGdonor_gain0.9900
8:28339429:GAATG:Gdonor_gain0.9900
8:28339492:G:GGdonor_gain0.9900
8:28329127:T:Gacceptor_gain0.9800
8:28329133:A:AGacceptor_gain0.9800
8:28329134:G:GGacceptor_gain0.9800
8:28339039:GGT:Gacceptor_gain0.9800
8:28339039:GGTGT:Gacceptor_gain0.9800
8:28339490:GA:Gdonor_gain0.9800
8:28329134:GCA:Gacceptor_gain0.9700
8:28329134:GCAC:Gacceptor_gain0.9700
8:28329279:TGGAG:Tdonor_loss0.9700
8:28329281:GAGGT:Gdonor_loss0.9700
8:28329282:AG:Adonor_loss0.9700
8:28329283:GG:Gdonor_loss0.9700
8:28329284:G:GCdonor_loss0.9700
8:28329285:TAGG:Tdonor_loss0.9700
8:28339038:A:AGacceptor_gain0.9700
8:28339038:AGGT:Aacceptor_gain0.9700

AlphaMissense

1168 scored. Top likely-pathogenic:

VariantProtein changeam_pathogenicity
8:28339310:T:CF133L0.998
8:28339311:T:GF133C0.998
8:28339312:C:AF133L0.998
8:28339312:C:GF133L0.998
8:28339311:T:CF133S0.995
8:28339336:G:CR141S0.993
8:28339336:G:TR141S0.993
8:28339327:G:CK138N0.992
8:28339327:G:TK138N0.992
8:28339301:T:CF130L0.991
8:28339303:T:AF130L0.991
8:28339303:T:GF130L0.991
8:28339368:T:CF152S0.991
8:28339354:G:CK147N0.990
8:28339354:G:TK147N0.990
8:28339305:G:AG131E0.989
8:28339367:T:CF152L0.989
8:28339369:T:AF152L0.989
8:28339369:T:GF152L0.989
8:28339300:A:CR129S0.988
8:28339300:A:TR129S0.988
8:28339335:G:CR141T0.988
8:28339379:T:GY156D0.987
8:28339339:G:CK142N0.986
8:28339339:G:TK142N0.986
8:28339358:T:CF149L0.986
8:28339360:C:AF149L0.986
8:28339360:C:GF149L0.986
8:28339361:A:CS150R0.986
8:28339363:T:AS150R0.986

dbSNP variants (sampled 300 via entrez): RS1000018752 (8:28341623 T>C), RS1000067654 (8:28320373 A>G), RS1000091992 (8:28341362 T>C), RS1000171890 (8:28318287 G>T), RS1000204714 (8:28318545 G>A,T), RS1000514750 (8:28330192 C>T), RS1000636613 (8:28339667 T>C), RS1000672155 (8:28324239 C>A,T), RS1000678888 (8:28324051 T>A), RS1000731690 (8:28330362 C>T), RS1001024104 (8:28343044 C>A), RS1001038913 (8:28333226 T>A), RS1001095919 (8:28342873 T>G), RS1001259058 (8:28333868 C>G,T), RS1001313146 (8:28336889 T>C)

Disease associations

OMIM: gene MIM:601459 | disease phenotypes:

GenCC curated gene-disease

Mondo (0):

Orphanet (0):

HPO phenotypes

0 total (0 of 0 shown, HPO-id order):

GWAS associations

3 associations (top):

StudyTraitp-value
GCST004904_78Body mass index4.000000e-08
GCST009391_1547Metabolite levels6.000000e-06
GCST011494_40Daytime nap2.000000e-12

EFO canonical traits (3, from GWAS)

EFO IDTrait name
EFO:0004340body mass index
EFO:0010511niacinamide measurement
EFO:0007828daytime rest measurement

Drugs & pharmacology

Drug and pharmacology data

Is drug target: no

PharmGKB: 1 entry (VIP=true, CPIC=false)

PharmGKB clinical annotations

4 annotations.

VariantTypeLevelDrugsPhenotypes
rs351776Toxicity3buprenorphineNeonatal Abstinence Syndrome
rs351776Toxicity3methadoneNeonatal Abstinence Syndrome
rs4732636Toxicity3buprenorphineNeonatal Abstinence Syndrome
rs4732636Toxicity3methadoneNeonatal Abstinence Syndrome

PharmGKB variants

2 variants.

VariantGenesLevelScore#Clin annotsDrugs
rs351776PNOC30.002buprenorphine;methadone
rs2614095PNOC0.000

CTD chemical–gene interactions

17 total (human), top 17 by PubMed support.

ChemicalActions (top 5)PubMed papers
sodium arseniteaffects methylation, increases expression2
bisphenol Faffects cotreatment, increases methylation1
triphenyl phosphateaffects expression1
bisphenol Aaffects cotreatment, affects methylation, decreases methylation1
arseniteincreases methylation1
butyraldehydeincreases expression1
di-n-butylphosphoric acidaffects expression1
CGP 52608affects binding, increases reaction1
bisphenol Sdecreases methylation1
Fulvestrantincreases methylation, affects cotreatment, affects methylation1
Benzo(a)pyreneaffects methylation, decreases methylation1
Formaldehydedecreases expression1
Leadaffects expression1
Methyl Methanesulfonatedecreases expression1
Tretinoinincreases expression1
Triclosandecreases expression1
Vincristinedecreases expression1

Clinical trials (associated diseases)

0 trials via MONDO — disease-level, not drug-specific.

No linked Atlas pages yet — the cross-entity mesh grows as the corpus expands.