This gene encodes a type I transmembrane protein and is a tumor-specific endothelial marker that has been implicated in colorectal cancer. The encoded protein has been shown to also be a docking protein or receptor for Bacillus anthracis toxin, the causative agent of the disease, anthrax. The binding of the protective antigen (PA) component, of the tripartite anthrax toxin, to this receptor protein mediates delivery of toxin components to the cytosol of cells. Once inside the cell, the other two components of anthrax toxin, edema factor (EF) and lethal factor (LF) disrupt normal cellular processes. Three alternatively spliced variants that encode different protein isoforms have been described.
