Biological actions and interactions of anosmin-1

Abstract

Kallmann syndrome is a multigenic human developmental disorder where the molecular pathogenesis is still only partially understood and there is no single unifying animal model. The protein anosmin-1, encoded by the KAL1 gene, is associated with the X-linked form of the disease. The biology and molecular structure of anosmin-1 has been investigated systematically over the years by various cell culture experiments, biochemical analyses and animal models. Anosmin-1 is an extracellular matrix-associated protein which plays pleiotropic roles in neuronal development, migration and organogenesis.