Zinc is an essential cofactor for hundreds of enzymes. It is involved in protein, nucleic acid, carbohydrate, and lipid metabolism, as well as in the control of gene transcription, growth, development, and differentiation. SLC39A12 belongs to a subfamily of proteins that show structural characteristics of zinc transporters (Taylor and Nicholson, 2003 [PubMed 12659941]).[supplied by OMIM, Aug 2008].