Essential for cardiac morphogenesis, particularly for the formation of the right ventricle and of the aortic arch arteries. Required for vascular development and regulation of angiogenesis, possibly through a VEGF signaling pathway. Also plays an important role in limb development, particularly in the establishment of anterior- posterior polarization, acting as an upstream regulator of sonic hedgehog (SHH) induction in the limb bud. Is involved in the development of branchial arches, which give rise to unique structures in the head and neck. Binds DNA on E-box consensus sequence 5'-CANNTG- 3' (By similarity). . This is the function of Ensembl gene identifier ENSG00000164107 (HAND2, heart and neural crest derivatives expressed 2).