This gene product is the main apolipoprotein of chylomicrons and low density lipoproteins. It occurs in plasma as two main isoforms, apoB-48 and apoB-100. Unlike the apoB-48 and apoB-100 structural equivalents in human, which are synthesized exclusively in the gut and liver, respectively, the mouse apoB-48 isoform is also found in mouse liver. The intestinal and the hepatic forms of apoB are encoded by a single gene from a single, very long mRNA. The two isoforms share a common N-terminal sequence. The shorter apoB-48 protein is produced after RNA editing of the apoB-100 transcript at residue 2179 (CAA->UAA), resulting in the creation of a stop codon, and early translation termination. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]