KICSTOR

Pathway/Complex · 2 studies in the Atlas

A lysosomal scaffold complex (composed of KAPTIN, ITFG2, C12orf66, and SZT2) that recruits GATOR1 to the lysosomal surface. Required for amino-acid-deprivation-dependent suppression of mTORC1; without KICSTOR, GATOR1 cannot reach the Rag GTPases and mTORC1 remains inappropriately active during starvation.

The dock GATOR1 needs. A docking complex on the lysosome that helps station the GATOR1 'brake' where it can reach and switch off mTORC1. Without it, GATOR1 can't do its job, so mTORC1 stays on even when nutrients are scarce.

Loss uncouples mTORC1 from nutrient status; SZT2 mutations cause a human epileptic encephalopathy.

TL;DR. KICSTOR appears in 2 curated studies in Oliver's mTOR Atlas: 2 at the molecular level (cells, biochemistry, structure). No study in people is recorded for it in the Atlas yet. It has 1 interaction in the curated pathway model.

In the pathway model

1 interaction in the curated mTOR pathway model. Each row is a claim with the evidence behind it; the evidence code is the kind of study, not its quality.

Interaction	Mechanism	Evidence	Studies
KICSTOR required-for GATOR1 mechanism: recruitment · this link in full · on the map table	KICSTOR works like a docking clamp that holds GATOR1 in place on the lysosome; without it, GATOR1 can't reach its target. KICSTOR is the dock that holds GATOR1 on the lysosomal surface. Without it, GATOR1 cannot reach its target and nutrient control of mTORC1 is lost. KICSTOR is the dock that holds GATOR1 on the lysosomal surface. Without it, GATOR1 cannot reach its target and nutrient control of mTORC1 is lost. Holds under: Mammalian cell genetics (WOL2017, PEN2017). The dependency is shown in cultured cells; whole-animal and human relevance are not tested in the cited work. plausible in people, not shown directly · settled in the literature	M	WOL2017, PEN2017

Evidence at a glance

Evidence	What it means	Studies
M	Molecular — cells, biochemistry, structure	2

No direct human evidence in the Atlas for this entity yet — everything below rests on animal or molecular work.

Studies

Year	Evidence	Study
2017	M	SZT2 dictates GATOR control of mTORC1 signalling PEN2017 SZT2 organizes GATOR1/GATOR2 to dictate amino-acid control of mTORC1.
2017	M	KICSTOR recruits GATOR1 to the lysosome and is necessary for nutrients to regulate mTORC1 WOL2017 KICSTOR tethers GATOR1 to the lysosome, required for nutrient control of mTORC1.

Cite this page

ShowHide

Barton, O. (2026). KICSTOR [Entity page]. In Oliver's mTOR Atlas [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/complex/kicstor/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_complex_kicstor,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}: KICSTOR},
  howpublished = {Entity page in a data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/complex/kicstor/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}

Was this page useful?