The substrate(s) and physiological function of Peg1/MEST are not known; however, the protein may play a role in mammalian development and abnormalities in its expression by its gene (PEG1/MEST)by, for example, loss of Genomic imprinting, overexpression, or promoter switching, has been linked to certain types of cancer and tumors in humans such as invasive cervical cancer, uterine leiomyomas, and cancers of the breast, lung, and colon (see MEST (gene)).