SLC45A2

Membrane-associated transporter protein (MATP) also known as solute carrier family 45 member 2 (SLC45A2) or melanoma antigen AIM1 is a is_associated_with::protein that in humans is encoded by the SLC45A2 is_associated_with::gene.

Function
SLC45A2 is a transporter protein that mediates is_associated_with::melanin synthesis. SLC45A2 is also a is_associated_with::melanocyte differentiation antigen that is expressed in a high percentage of is_associated_with::melanoma cell lines. A similar sequence gene in medaka, 'B,' encodes a transporter that mediates melanin synthesis. Mutations in this gene are a cause of is_associated_with::oculocutaneous albinism type 4. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants encoding different isoforms.

In melanocytic cell types, the SLC45A2 gene is regulated by is_associated_with::microphthalmia-associated transcription factor.

SLC45A2 has been found to play a role in pigmentation in several species. In humans, it has been identified as a factor in the light skin of Europeans and as an is_associated_with::ancestry-informative marker (AIM) for distinguishing Sri Lankan from European ancestry. SLC45A2 is the so-called is_associated_with::cream gene responsible in horses for buckskin, palomino and cremello coloration, while a mutation in this gene underlies the is_associated_with::white tiger variant.