Edn1 - endothelin 1

This gene encodes a member of the endothelin family of peptides. The encoded preproprotein undergoes proteolytic processing to generate a peptide before secretion by the vascular endothelial cells. The mature peptide has various biological activities such as vasoconstriction, cell proliferation, stimulation of hormone release and modulation of central nervous activity. Mice lacking the encoded protein exhibit neonatal lethality accompanied with numerous craniofacial and cardiovascular defects due to disruption in cranial and cardiac neural crest cell patterning during early embryogenesis. [provided by RefSeq, Feb 2016]