Involved in early development of embryos, especially in the process of gastrulation. May play an important role in establishing and specifying rhombomeric segments. Seems to be required to maintain the cells in a highly undifferentiated state. In contrast to POU2, T-POU2 lacks DNA-binding activity because of its incomplete pou domain structure. Overexpression of POU2 does not have any effect on development, whereas overexpression of t- POU2 causes developmental retardation or arrest before gastrulation.
