Collagen Type IV Alpha 6 (COL4a6)

Collagen alpha-6(IV) chain is one of the six subunits of type IV collagen, the major structural component of basement membranes. Like the other members of the type IV collagen gene family, this gene is organized in a head-to-head conformation with another type IV collagen gene, alpha 5 type IV collagen, so that the gene pair shares a common promoter. Deletions in the alpha 5 gene that extend into the alpha 6 gene result in diffuse leiomyomatosis accompanying the X-linked Alport syndrome caused by the deletion in the alpha 5 gene. The deduced polypeptide contains 1,678 amino acid residues, including a 21-residue signal peptide, a 24-residue amino-terminal noncollagenous domain, a central 1,405-residue collagenous domain, and a 228-residue carboxyl-terminal noncollagenous domain.