Slit13

Slit13 is a name that sometimes appears in discussions of the Slit family of secreted guidance cues, but it is not a widely recognized or consistently annotated human gene. In standard human gene catalogs, the Slit family comprises SLIT1, SLIT2, and SLIT3. If Slit13 is encountered in literature or in non-human genomes, it often reflects a species-specific paralog, a misannotation, or an alias for another SLIT gene rather than a distinct, well-supported human gene.

What is clear from the Slit family is that Slit proteins are large secreted glycoproteins that regulate cell migration and axon guidance. They act primarily as chemorepellents that influence neuronal pathfinding and angiogenesis by signaling through Robo receptors. The proteins feature characteristic domains, including leucine-rich repeats, EGF-like repeats, and a laminin G-like domain, and they modulate cytoskeletal dynamics via intracellular signaling cascades.

In vertebrates, SLIT1, SLIT2, and SLIT3 are expressed in a variety of tissues, notably within the developing central nervous system and vascular structures, where they contribute to midline axon crossing, cortical development, and vascular patterning. If Slit13 designations occur in other species, their function would be expected to align with the Slit–Robo signaling paradigm, though specific expression patterns and roles may differ.

Clinical relevance associated with Slit proteins generally concerns improper Slit–Robo signaling linked to neurodevelopmental disorders and cancer. However, there is no well-established disease association specifically for a distinct Slit13 gene, given the lack of consistent validation in current genome annotations. Researchers should verify Slit13 usage against up-to-date databases such as Ensembl, NCBI Gene, and UniProt.