Schlafen Family Member 11 (SLFN11)

SLFN11, Belongs to the Schlafen family. Schlafens form a poorly characterised multigene family, with ten murine members identified that can be split into three subgroups based on homology and size of their encoded proteins. Schlafen homologues are found across a broad range of species, from bacteria and viruses, to frogs, horses and humans. Three of the murine Schlafen proteins are reported to inhibit cellular proliferation, Little functional information has been gained for any of the Schlafen proteins, but due to their reported effects on proliferation, it is thought that several of them may possess tumour suppressor activity. Schlafen gene expression is reported to increase during myeloid differentiation, suggesting a possible regulatory role for these genes in the process of haematopoiesis.