Podoplanin (PDPN) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the PDPN gene. This gene encodes a type-I integral membrane glycoprotein with diverse distribution in human tissues. The International radiation Hybrid mapping consortium mapped the T1A gene to chromosome 1. It has got 162 amino acid protein which is a typical type I membrane glycoprotein, with an N-terminal signal sequence, a signal sequence cleavage site, a C-terminal hydrophobic stretch, and a short cytoplasmic tail. Northern blot analysis detected a 1.2-kb T1A2 transcript only in lung. It has been described as a differentiation antigen and influenza-virus receptor, and a marker of lung injury.