Tetraspanin 13 (TSPAN13)

Tetraspanin-13 is a member of the transmembrane 4 superfamily, also known as the tetraspanin family. Most of these members are cell-surface proteins that are characterized by the presence of four hydrophobic domains. The proteins mediate signal transduction events that play a role in the regulation of cell development, activation, growth and motility.

By searching an EST database for tetraspanin-like sequences, Serru et al. (2000) identified TSPAN13, which they called NET6. The deduced 204-amino acid protein contains 4 transmembrane segments and other characteristics of a tetraspanin. RT-PCR detected TSPAN13 expression in all human cell lines examined.