Iroquois Homeobox Protein 1 (IRX1)

IRX1 is a member of the Iroquois homeobox gene family. Members of this family appear to play multiple roles during pattern formation of vertebrate embryos.

Members of the Iroquois complex in Drosophila, including the highly homologous homeobox genes caupolican, araucan, and mirror, act as prepattern molecules in neurogenesis. Bosse et al. (1997) identified 3 members of the Iroquois homeobox gene family in mouse and showed that they are involved in several embryonic developmental processes including anterior/posterior and dorsal/ventral patterning of specific regions of the central nervous system, and regionalization of the otic vesicle, branchial epithelium, and limbs