The protein encoded by this gene is a single pass membrane protein primarily found in ovaries. A similar protein in erythrocytes helps determine the shape of red blood cells, but the function of the encoded protein has not been determined. There is some evidence that this is a tumor suppressor gene, and there is also evidence linking defects in this gene to susceptibility to diabetic nephropathy in type 1 diabetes. Several transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, Oct 2011].