Cytokine that has an axial patterning activity. Acts like BMP antagonist in embryonic explants. Blocks the BMP2 activity. First detected at tailbud stages. At stage 27, appears in the pronephric duct, trunk and tail bud. In stage 30-40 embryos, expression extends rostrally and caudally to include neural crest cells at all axial levels. Belongs to the DAN family.