Cadherin-12 is a
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
that in humans is encoded by the ''CDH12''
gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...
.
This gene encodes a type II classical
cadherin
Cadherins (named for "calcium-dependent adhesion") are a type of cell adhesion molecule (CAM) that is important in the formation of adherens junctions to allow cells to adhere to each other . Cadherins are a class of type-1 transmembrane proteins, ...
from the cadherin superfamily of integral membrane proteins that mediate calcium-dependent cell-cell adhesion. Mature cadherin proteins are composed of a large N-terminal extracellular domain, a single membrane-spanning domain, and a small, highly conserved C-terminal cytoplasmic domain. Type II (atypical) cadherins are defined based on their lack of an HAV cell adhesion recognition sequence specific to type I cadherins. This particular cadherin appears to be expressed specifically in the brain and its
temporal pattern
Spatiotemporal patterns are patterns that occur in a wide range of patterns in nature, natural phenoma and are characterized by a spatial and a temporal patterning. The general rules of pattern formation hold. In contrast to "static", pure spa ...
of expression would be consistent with a role during a critical period of neuronal development, perhaps specifically during synaptogenesis.
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