NCAM2
Description
The NCAM2 (neural cell adhesion molecule 2) is a protein-coding gene located on chromosome 21.
NCAM2, also known as CD56, is a cell surface protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily. It is involved in cell-cell adhesion and is found on neurons, glia, and skeletal muscle cells. NCAM2 exhibits a wide range of isoforms due to alternative splicing, with the three main isoforms differing in their cytoplasmic domain: NCAM-120kDa (GPI anchored), NCAM-140kDa (short cytoplasmic domain), and NCAM-180kDa (long cytoplasmic domain). The extracellular domain of NCAM2 contains five immunoglobulin-like (Ig) domains followed by two fibronectin type III (FNIII) domains. These domains contribute to its function in homophilic binding and signaling leading to neurite outgrowth. While NCAM2 is often associated with neural lineage commitment, it is also expressed in the hematopoietic system, particularly on natural killer cells and other lymphoid cells. NCAM2 has been implicated in various processes, including cell-cell adhesion, neurite outgrowth, synaptic plasticity, and learning and memory.
NCAM2 is also known as NCAM21.
