# NM_004333.6(BRAF):c.1443A>C (p.Ala481=)

https://sugi.bio/variant/braf-p-ala481

## Summary

**BRAF p.Ala481= (c.1443A>C)** is classified **Likely benign** in BRAF (ClinVar, Single submitter, 1 submitter; last evaluated 2021-08-20). Absent from gnomAD v4.1; Associated with RASopathy.

**At a glance:** Likely benign · review: Single submitter · rsID rs2129019701 · 1 submitter · 1 linked condition · absent from gnomAD v4.1

## For patients & families {#patients}

This is a change in the BRAF gene that is classified as likely benign — not considered disease-causing, submitted by 1 submitter, and is linked to RASopathy.

*Reference information, not medical advice, and not a prediction for any individual. A genetic counselor or clinician can interpret what it means for you and your family.*

|  |  |
| --- | --- |
| Clinical trials | 9 registered for this condition — see ClinicalTrials.gov |

**Support & next steps:** [Condition overview & support (NIH GARD)](https://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/diseases/0022213/index) · [Find a genetic counselor (NSGC)](https://findageneticcounselor.nsgc.org/).

## Identity {#identity}

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Gene | [BRAF](https://sugi.bio/atlas/gene/BRAF/) |
| Protein change (HGVS p.) | p.Ala481= |
| Coding change (HGVS c.) | c.1443A>C |
| MANE Select transcript | [NM_004333](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/NM_004333) |
| dbSNP | [rs2129019701](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/snp/rs2129019701/) |
| Variant type | single nucleotide variant |
| Location | chr7:140778065-140778065 (GRCh38) |
| ClinVar | [VCV1553324](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/clinvar/variation/1553324/) |

**All HGVS expressions:** `LRG_299:g.151700A>C`, `NC_000007.13:g.140477865T>G`, `NC_000007.14:g.140778065T>G`, `NG_007873.3:g.151700A>C`, `NM_001354609.2:c.1443A>C`, `NM_001374244.1:c.1563A>C`, `NM_001374258.1:c.1563A>C`, `NM_001378467.1:c.1452A>C`, `NM_001378468.1:c.1443A>C`, `NM_001378469.1:c.1377A>C`, `NM_001378470.1:c.1341A>C`, `NM_001378471.1:c.1332A>C`, `NM_001378472.1:c.1287A>C`, `NM_001378473.1:c.1287A>C`, `NM_001378474.1:c.1443A>C`, `NM_001378475.1:c.1179A>C`, `NM_004333.6:c.1443A>C`

## Computational & population evidence {#evidence}

**Concordance:** Mixed / partial computational evidence (see below).

- **Missense predictors (AlphaMissense/REVEL/SaProt) do not apply** to this variant type — they score amino-acid substitutions only. For non-missense variants the computational signal comes from conservation (below), not from a missing predictor score.
- Conservation: phyloP -0.152, GERP 0.321, phastCons 0.697 — not a conserved position (phyloP < 0.1, ACGS BP7 cut)
- CADD: **PHRED 8.268**. No single ClinGen-calibrated threshold exists and the expert panels that use CADD disagree — GUCY2D/AIPL1 require ≥ 20.0 for an untranslated-region variant, ABCA4 ≥ 28.1 for a synonymous or indel variant, the Pulmonary Hypertension panel imports Pejaver 2022's missense-calibrated numbers, and the Antibody Deficiencies panel declines CADD entirely for PIK3CD. CADD v1.7 also incorporates Zoonomia phyloP, so it partly re-expresses the conservation above. *Descriptive; no threshold applied.*
- SpliceAI: **no splice effect predicted**. SpliceAI outputs four numbers per variant, not one: acceptor loss, donor loss, acceptor gain, donor gain (DS_AL / DS_DL / DS_AG / DS_DG). A loss score is an existing splice site weakened or destroyed; a gain score is a new site created or an existing one strengthened. The release publishes its own filter rule, which we read from the dataset rather than assume: an allele is reported only if the largest of its four deltas reaches 0.2. No allele at this position is in the release, so all four are under 0.2 for every alternate allele here. No figure is shown because none was read: the bound is deduced from that absence. It is a result, not a gap in our data, because the release scores every possible substitution across the transcripts it covers (Ensembl MANE v1.4) before it filters, so what survives for a gene is one continuous stretch. What is measured is that this position sits inside the stretch covered for BRAF (1,481 scored positions, the nearest 3 bases away); what is taken from the release's own description, rather than measured, is that coverage inside that stretch is continuous. On that, SpliceAI did score it. *ClinGen's SVI treats the largest of the four as evidence against a splicing effect at or below 0.1, where it may support BP4, and as uninformative between 0.1 and 0.2. We cannot tell which applies here, so these SpliceAI data support neither BP4 nor PP3; that is a statement about this evidence alone, not about the variant's other evidence.*
- Population frequency: **absent from gnomAD v4.1** — a rarity signal (ACMG PM2-supporting), not evidence of pathogenicity on its own.

*Computational predictors are not independent (ClinGen Variant Classification guidance): AlphaMissense (Cheng et al. 2023) carries the ACMG weight for missense and conservation (phyloP/GERP/phastCons) for non-missense; REVEL (Pejaver-2022 calibrated strength bands) and SaProt (Su et al. 2023, structure-aware, ClinVar-independent protein language model, raw LLR) are shown as orthogonal agreement signals, not additive. For frequency, the gnomAD v4.1 grpmax filtering allele frequency (FAF95) is ClinGen's designated BA1/BS1 input (gnomAD v4 guidance v3.0, June 2025); BA1/BS1 thresholds are disease-specific, not a blanket 5%. Predictions, not a clinical determination.*

## Gene constraint & dosage {#gene-context}

**BRAF** population constraint: LOEUF 0.237, pLI 1, missense-Z 4.9103; ClinGen dosage — haploinsufficiency 0/3, triplosensitivity 0/3. *Lower LOEUF and higher pLI indicate a gene that tolerates loss-of-function poorly; ClinGen dosage is the curated haploinsufficiency call.*

Curated gene–disease validity (ClinGen):

- **Noonan syndrome** — Moderate (AD)
- **Noonan syndrome with multiple lentigines** — Limited (AD)
- **cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome** — Definitive (AD)
- **Costello syndrome** — Disputed (AD)

## Protein context {#protein}

Residue **481** lies in a β-strand; the protein kinase domain.

AlphaFold model confidence (whole protein): pLDDT 67.87, 31% of residues very-high.

**135 experimental structure(s)** (PDB): [1UWH](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/1UWH), [1UWJ](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/1UWJ), [2FB8](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/2FB8), [2L05](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/2L05), [3C4C](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/3C4C), [3D4Q](https://www.rcsb.org/structure/3D4Q) — incl. mutant structure 1UWJ.

## What this gene does {#gene-function}

*Describes the biological roles of BRAF (the gene this variant disrupts) — not effects measured for this specific variant. A damaging variant is expected to affect these functions and pathways; the degree depends on the variant.*

**How this variant is thought to act:** BRAF's established molecular role includes protein kinase activity. p.Ala481= falls in the protein kinase domain. In Reactome, BRAF is annotated in disease pathway(s) including **Gain-of-function MRAS complexes activate RAF signaling**, **Paradoxical activation of RAF signaling by kinase inactive BRAF**.

**Disease mechanism (Reactome):** BRAF loss or alteration is curated in [Gain-of-function MRAS complexes activate RAF signaling](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9726842), [Paradoxical activation of RAF signaling by kinase inactive BRAF](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-6802955), [SHOC2 M1731 mutant abolishes MRAS complex function](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9726840).

### Pathways affected {#pathways}

BRAF participates in **16 Reactome pathways** (⚕ = disease pathway):

| Pathway (Reactome) | Evidence |
| --- | --- |
| ⚕ [Gain-of-function MRAS complexes activate RAF signaling](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9726842) | curated |
| ⚕ [Paradoxical activation of RAF signaling by kinase inactive BRAF](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-6802955) | curated |
| ⚕ [SHOC2 M1731 mutant abolishes MRAS complex function](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9726840) | curated |
| ⚕ [Signaling by BRAF and RAF1 fusions](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-6802952) | curated |
| ⚕ [Signaling by RAF1 mutants](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9656223) | curated |
| ⚕ [Signaling by high-kinase activity BRAF mutants](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-6802948) | curated |
| ⚕ [Signaling by moderate kinase activity BRAF mutants](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-6802946) | curated |
| ⚕ [Signaling downstream of RAS mutants](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-9649948) | curated |
| [MAP2K and MAPK activation](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-5674135) | curated |
| [Negative feedback regulation of MAPK pathway](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-5674499) | curated |
| [Negative regulation of MAPK pathway](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-5675221) | curated |
| [RAF activation](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-5673000) | curated |
| [Spry regulation of FGF signaling](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-1295596) | curated |
| [ARMS-mediated activation](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-170984) | electronic |
| [Frs2-mediated activation](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-170968) | electronic |
| [Signalling to p38 via RIT and RIN](https://reactome.org/content/detail/R-HSA-187706) | electronic |

### Molecular function & processes (GO — experimentally supported) {#go}

**Molecular function:** protein kinase activity, protein serine/threonine kinase activity, MAP kinase kinase activity, calcium ion binding, identical protein binding, scaffold protein binding.

**Biological process:** MAPK cascade, epidermal growth factor receptor signaling pathway, positive regulation of gene expression, positive regulation of D-glucose transmembrane transport, positive regulation of peptidyl-serine phosphorylation, negative regulation of apoptotic process.

## Clinical significance {#significance}

**Likely benign** — review status Single submitter *(criteria provided, single submitter)*, last evaluated 2021-08-20.

**Submitter consensus:** unanimous (1/1 Likely benign).

### Submitter classifications {#submitters}

| Submitter | Classification | Review | Method | Date |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Labcorp Genetics (formerly Invitae), Labcorp | Likely benign | criteria provided, single submitter | clinical testing | 2021-08-20 |

## Associated conditions {#conditions}

[RASopathy](https://sugi.bio/atlas/disease/rasopathy/).

**Reported phenotype names (ClinVar):** RASopathy, rasopathies, Noonan spectrum disorder.

## Same-residue context {#hotspot}

Residue **481** carries **1 other pathogenic ClinVar variant** — a recurrently-mutated position: [BRAF p.Ala481Glu](/variant/braf-p-ala481glu). *Positional co-occurrence of independent ClinVar records, not functional proof.*

## Similar variants {#similar}

Related BRAF variant pages (same residue, condition, or type): [BRAF p.Ala481Thr](/variant/braf-p-ala481thr), [BRAF p.Ala481Glu](/variant/braf-p-ala481glu), [BRAF p.Ala481Val](/variant/braf-p-ala481val), [BRAF p.Ala246Pro](/variant/braf-p-ala246pro), [BRAF p.Asn581Asp](/variant/braf-p-asn581asp), [BRAF p.Asp594Val](/variant/braf-p-asp594val), [BRAF p.Cys532Tyr](/variant/braf-p-cys532tyr), [BRAF p.Gln257Arg](/variant/braf-p-gln257arg).

### Data sources & attribution {#sources}

ClinVar (NCBI — public domain, built 2026-10-14); gnomAD v4.1 (Broad Institute, built 2026-10-15); AlphaMissense (Cheng et al. 2023, © Google DeepMind — CC BY 4.0, built 2026-01-27); REVEL (Ioannidis et al. 2016 — ODbL, built 2026-07-13); SaProt (Su et al. 2023 — MIT, built 2026-10-14); SpliceAI (Illumina — free for non-commercial use, built 2026-10-13); CADD (Rentzsch et al. 2019, University of Washington — free for non-commercial use, built 2026-10-10); Conservation (phyloP/phastCons/GERP) (UCSC hg38 470-way mammal (Hiller Lab) + Ensembl Compara, built 2026-07-12); gnomAD Non-coding Constraint (Gnocchi) (Chen et al. 2024, Broad Institute — CC0, built 2026-10-11); gnomAD Regional Missense Constraint (Broad Institute — CC0, built 2026-10-13); Pangolin (Zeng & Li 2022 — CC BY 4.0, built 2026-10-11); Repeat regions (UCSC — RepeatMasker, TRF, segmental duplications, built 2026-10-11); ClinGen (ClinGen, built 2026-09-22); UniProt (CC BY 4.0); Reactome / GO (CC BY 4.0, built 2026-09-23); MaveDB (per-record license, built 2026-10-11); CIViC (CC0, built 2026-09-22); Orphanet (Orphanet, built 2026-06-12)

*Primary record: NCBI ClinVar (variation 1553324). Classifications reflect these databases as of the page's build date and may change. Free reference use — not medical advice; consult the primary submitters and a clinician.*