This gene belongs to the tropomyosin family which encodes proteins that bind to actin filaments and stabilize them by regulating access to actin modifying proteins. The encoded protein is a high molecular weight tropomyosin expressed in slow skeletal muscle. In humans, mutations in this gene are associated with nemaline myopathy, cap disease and distal arthrogryposis syndromes. Alternative splicing of this gene results in multiple transcript variants encoding different isoforms. [provided by RefSeq, Apr 2013]