Probable transcription factor involved in the development of the midbrain/hindbrain boundary (MHB) organizer and specification of neuronal cell fates. Required for establishment of eng2 and eng3 gene expression in the midbrain and MHB primordium during late gastrulation. Additional isoforms seem to exist. Expressed during embryogenesis in the kidney, optic stalk, midbrain, otic vesicle and a row of cells along the spinal cord and the hindbrain. First seen during the formation of neural keel. At 9-10 hours of development expression seen in two laterally located transverse stripes of cells in the rostral 1/3 of the embryo, and the two areas subsequently move towards the midline and form the posterior portion of the midbrain. Detected in the otic placode, Wolffian duct including the nephritic primordium and optic stalk at 10-12 hours. At 14-15 hours expression seen in the single cells along the spinal cord, presumably interneurons.