Transcription factor (By similarity). May play a role in pharyngeal cell differentiation (Probable). May have a protective role in response to infection by the Gram-negative bacterium Vibrio cholerae (PubMed:22675448). Expressed in 14 pharyngeal cells, which include nine marginal cells, the e2 epithelial cells and the pm8 muscle (PubMed:20714352). Earliest expression in marginal cells is shortly after embryonic cell division ceases, at the late-bean to early-comma stages of development (PubMed:20714352). Expression in these cells diminishes during later embryogenesis and is absent in larvae and adults (PubMed:20714352).