Trem2 - triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2

The protein encoded by this gene is part of the immunoglobulin and lectin-like superfamily and functions as part of the innate immune system. This gene forms part of a cluster of genes on mouse chromosome 17 thought to be involved in innate immunity. This protein associates with the adaptor protein Dap-12 and recruits several factors, such as kinases and phospholipase C-gamma, to form a receptor signaling complex that activates myeloid cells, including dendritic cells and microglia. In humans homozygous loss-of-function mutations in this gene cause Nasu-Hakola disease and mutations in this gene may be risk factors to the development of Alzheimer's disease. In mouse mutations of this gene serve as a pathophysiological model for polycystic lipomembranous osteodysplasia with sclerosing leukoencephalopathy (Nasu-Hakola disease) and for inflammatory bowel disease. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants that encode different protein isoforms. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2013]