Cysteine-rich domain of the variant 3 of collagen XVIII (V3C18 ).
The cysteine-rich domain (CRD) is an essential part of the variant 3 of collagen XVIII (V3C18), which regulates major cellular functions such as the differential epithelial morphogenesis of early lung and kidney development. V3C18 is a 170 kD protein, which is proteolotically processed into the CRD-containing 50 kD glucoprotein precursor that binds Wnt3a through its CRD domain and suppresses the Wnt3a-induced stabilization of beta catenin. Full-length V3C18 is unable to inhibit Wnt signaling.