Complete loss of murine Xin results in a mild cardiac phenotype with altered distribution of intercalated discs.

Aims: Xin is a striated muscle-specific F-actin binding protein that has been implicated in cardiomyopathies. In cardiomyocytes, Xin is localized at intercalated discs (IDs). Mice lacking only two of the three Xin isoforms (XinAB−/− mice) develop severe cardiac hypertrophy. To further investigate the function of Xin variants in the mammalian heart, we generated XinABC−/− mice deficient in all Xin isoforms. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]