Cadherins are a family of adhesion molecules that mediate Ca2+-dependent cell-cell adhesion in all solid tissues and modulate a wide variety of processes, including cell polarization and migration. Cadherin domains occur as repeats in the extracellular region and are thought to contribute to the sorting of heterogeneous cell types and the maintenance of orderly structures such as epithelium. This gene encodes a cadherin domain-containing protein whose specific function has not yet been determined. Alternative splicing occurs at this locus and two transcript variants, encoding distinct proteins, have been identified. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008].
Function: Cadherins are calcium dependent cell adhesion proteins. They preferentially interact with themselves in a homophilic manner in connecting cells; cadherins may thus contribute to the sorting of heterogeneous cell types.