Notch-4

Notch-4 is the least characterized of the four human Notch receptors and is expressed predominantly in endothelial cells, with reported roles in angiogenesis and vascular patterning. As a typical Notch family member it is a type I transmembrane protein whose intracellular domain is released by ADAM and gamma-secretase cleavage after ligand binding, then enters the nucleus to modulate RBPJ-dependent transcription. In mice the orthologous locus int-3 was identified as a common integration site of mouse mammary tumor virus, and ectopic Notch-4 activation is oncogenic in mammary epithelium. Genetic variants near NOTCH4 have also been associated with schizophrenia susceptibility in genome-wide studies.