TRPC6 (Transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily C, member 6), also known as TRP6, is a transient receptor potentialion channel.TRPC6 is a novel member of the TRPC family. The predicted 931-amino acid protein shares 93% identity with mouse Trpc6. Northern blot analysis revealed that TRPC6 is expressed primarily in placenta, lung, spleen, ovary, and small intestine. The TRPC6 gene is mapped on 11q22.1. TRPC6 is a nonselective cation channel that is activated by diacylglycerol (DAG) in a membrane-delimited fashion, independently of protein kinase C. Although TRPC3, the closest structural relative of TRPC6, is activated in the same manner, human TRPC1 and mouse Trpc4 and Trpc5 were unresponsive to DAG. Immunofluorescence studies showed that most TRPC6 expression is confined to podocytes. TRPC6 was also expressed in glomerular endothelial cells. Cardiac-specific overexpression of TRPC6 in transgenic mice resulted in heightened sensitivity to stress, a propensity for lethal cardiac growth and heart failure, and an increase in Nfat-dependent expression of beta-myosin heavy chain (MYH7), a marker for pathologic hypertrophy. Studies of Trpc6 -/- mice showed that Trpc6 has a role in regulation of smooth muscle tone in blood vessels and lung.