This gene encodes a secreted protein and member of the ADAMTS (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motif) family. This protein lacks the metalloproteinase and disintegrin-like domains, which are typical of the ADAMTS family, but contains other ADAMTS domains, including the thrombospondin type 1 motif. This protein may have important functions in the extracellular matrix. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants encoding distinct proteins. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008].