Zinc finger protein SNAI1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the SNAI1 gene. The Drosophila embryonic protein snail is a zinc finger transcriptional repressor which downregulates the expression of ectodermal genes within the mesoderm. The nuclear protein encoded by this gene is structurally similar to the Drosophila snail protein, and is also thought to be critical for mesoderm formation in the developing embryo. At least two variants of a similar processed pseudogene have been found on chromosome 2. [provided by RefSeq]. Publication Note: This RefSeq record includes a subset of the publications that are available for this gene. Please see the Gene record to access additional publications.
Involved in the epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) and formation and maintenance of embryonic mesoderm (By similarity). Binds to 3 E-boxes of the E-cadherin gene promoter and represses its transcription.