This gene is a member of the protocadherin alpha gene cluster, one of three related gene clusters tandemly linked on chromosome 5 that demonstrate an unusual genomic organization similar to that of B-cell and T-cell receptor gene clusters.
The alpha gene cluster is composed of 15 cadherin superfamily genes related to the mouse CNR genes and consists of 13 highly similar and 2 more distantly related coding sequences. The tandem array of 15 N-terminal exons, or variable exons, are followed by downstream C-terminal exons, or constant exons, which are shared by all genes in the cluster. The large, uninterrupted N-terminal exons each encode six cadherin ectodomains while the C-terminal exons encode the cytoplasmic domain.
These neural cadherin-like cell adhesion proteins are integral plasma membrane proteins that most likely play a critical role in the establishment and function of specific cell-cell connections in the brain. Alternative splicing has been observed and additional variants have been suggested but their full-length nature has yet to be determined.[6]
^Sugino H, Hamada S, Yasuda R, Tuji A, Matsuda Y, Fujita M, Yagi T (Apr 2000). "Genomic organization of the family of CNR cadherin genes in mice and humans". Genomics. 63 (1): 75–87. doi:10.1006/geno.1999.6066. PMID10662547.
Nollet F, Kools P, van Roy F (2000). "Phylogenetic analysis of the cadherin superfamily allows identification of six major subfamilies besides several solitary members". J. Mol. Biol. 299 (3): 551–72. doi:10.1006/jmbi.2000.3777. PMID10835267.
