Keratin 18 pseudogene 47 (KRT18P47)

Keratin 18 pseudogene 47 (KRT18P47) is one of dozens of nonfunctional pseudogenes derived from the functional keratin 18 gene, which encodes a type I intermediate filament protein widely expressed in simple epithelial tissues. Pseudogenes such as KRT18P47 typically arise from duplication or retrotransposition events and, in the case of keratins 8 and 18, are found dispersed throughout the genome with no intact open reading frame, and are not known to be transcribed into functional protein or to play a role in human disease or drug targeting. The functional gene KRT18 (encoding keratin 18) is an important biomarker and structural protein, especially in the setting of epithelial cell biology and liver pathology. However, KRT18P47, as a pseudogene, does not encode a functional product or participate in canonical biological pathways, and there are no drugs or therapeutics directed at it. This name may sometimes appear in genome- or transcriptome-scale datasets but is not used as a therapeutic target, biomarker, or mechanistically relevant entity in disease or pharmacology. This is not a true therapeutic target or receptor; it is a noncoding pseudogene that should generally be excluded from target-based drug discovery analyses. No evidence for alternative function, disease association, or biomarker status can be found in authoritative sources.

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