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Genetics Library / Genes / SI

GENE REFERENCE / HGNC:10856

SI

sucrase-isomaltase

protein-coding gene3q26.1Gene information

What does this gene do?

The SI gene provides instructions for producing the enzyme sucrase-isomaltase. This enzyme is made in the cells that line the small intestine, where it is involved in breaking down the sugars sucrose (a sugar found in fruits, and also known as table sugar) and maltose (the sugar found in grains). This enzyme is also important for digesting starches, which are first broken down into sucrose and maltose. Sucrose and maltose are called disaccharides because they are each made up of two simple sugar molecules. Disaccharides must be broken down into simple sugar molecules to be used by the body. 

The sucrase-isomaltase enzyme is found on the surface of the intestinal epithelial cells, which are cells that line the walls of the intestine. These cells have fingerlike projections called microvilli that absorb nutrients from food as it passes through the intestine. Based on their appearance, groups of these microvilli are known collectively as the brush border. The role of the sucrase-isomaltase enzyme is to break down sucrose and maltose into simple sugars so that they can be absorbed by microvilli into intestinal epithelial cells.

Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine. Source publication: 2023-02-14. Source review: 2023-02.

Related condition topics

MedlinePlus mentions this gene in the condition pages below. These links alone do not show that the gene causes a condition.

ClinGen reviews

We found no matching ClinGen review in the data used here. This does not rule out a link between the gene and a condition.

ClinVar records

These numbers show what has been submitted to ClinVar. They cannot tell you how likely you are to have a condition.

Submitted alleles
1,753
Submissions for variants in or overlapping this gene
2,566
Submissions explicitly reporting this gene
2,514
Alleles reported pathogenic / likely pathogenic
176
VariationIDs with uncertain significance
780
VariationIDs with conflicting classifications
97

The rows count different things: alleles, submissions or VariationIDs. Their categories can overlap, so do not add them together. Pathogenic/likely pathogenic counts exclude structural variants that merely overlap a gene. A dash in the source means “not reported,” not zero.

NCBI produces the gene-summary file each week using counts recorded at the start of the month. The numbers may differ from those on the live ClinVar website. Read the field definitions ↗

View this gene in ClinVar ↗

YOUR DNA FILE

Can your DNA file tell you about SI?

From a DNA test kit (such as 23andMe, AncestryDNA or MyHeritage). These kits check a fixed list of about 600,000 to 700,000 positions across your whole genome. ClinVar lists 176 alleles in SI reported as pathogenic or likely pathogenic. A kit checks only some of these positions, and often none of them.

From whole genome sequencing (a VCF file). Sequencing reads most of your genome. Your file lists the places where your DNA differs from the reference genome. Some regions are hard to sequence, including parts of some genes that have near-identical copies elsewhere, and a VCF file does not record which positions were read well.

If a variant is not in your file, that does not mean you don’t have it.

What BioDecode checks

BioDecode compares every variant in your file with ClinVar, on your own computer. For each match, it shows the ClinVar classification, the review status and the condition it was reported for. Your file is not uploaded.

A ClinVar classification applies to one particular variant and the condition it was reported for. It does not tell you about other variants in SI.

BioDecode cannot fill gaps in your test, diagnose a condition or replace clinical testing.

Sources and dates

The source information on this page last changed on 2026-10-10.

HGNC Source details

Open source record ↗

Source release: Fri, 09 Oct 2026 13:40:45 GMT
Source record updated: 2023-01-20

SHA-256: e4cd9c6d7120051b80e5e61d2aeb98bd6a541ddd21f428a6eab922c11242e053

MedlinePlus Source details

Open source record ↗

Source release: Sat, 10 Oct 2026 05:16:07 GMT
Source publication: 2023-02-14
Source review: 2023-02

SHA-256: fdc8bd614310c12718379cef6569962e5d0e791cecabcc355b53a72816ac263a

ClinVar Source details

Open source record ↗

Source release: Sun, 04 Oct 2026 13:15:29 GMT

SHA-256: 126d9e5bded1d43c0380ac6684c86f9aab056d2ff2be93d743e408ed917ae558

About the library sources · Latest validated release · Record 6bf4b1ea9b1c