Nephrin Like Protein 3 (NEPH3)

NLG1 encodes a type I transmembrane protein, which the authors termed filtrin, that has 3 potential N-glycosylation sites and 4 O-glycosylation sites. The 178-residue cytoplasmic domain contains several potential phosphorylation sites and a proline-rich region. The 708-amino acid NEPH3 protein, like NEPH1 (KIRREL) and NEPH2, contains 5 extracellular Ig-like repeats, a transmembrane domain, and a cytoplasmic domain that has a stretch of 9 conserved residues (KDPTNGYYxV). EST database analysis suggested similar tissue distributions for all 3 NEPH proteins. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that both podocin (NPHS2) and NEPH1 colocalize in renal glomeruli and the glomerular basal membrane. RT-PCR analysis detected NEPH1, NEPH2, and NEPH3 in a podocyte cell line and in kidney cortex.