Contactin-4 is a
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...
that in humans is encoded by the ''CNTN4''
gene
In biology, the word gene has two meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity. The molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protei ...
.
The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the
immunoglobulin superfamily
The immunoglobulin superfamily (IgSF) is a large protein superfamily of cell surface and soluble proteins that are involved in the recognition, binding, or adhesion processes of cells. Molecules are categorized as members of this superfamily ...
. It is a
glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored neuronal membrane protein that functions as a
cell adhesion molecule
Cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) are a subset of cell surface proteins that are involved in the binding of cells with other cells or with the extracellular matrix (ECM), in a process called cell adhesion. In essence, CAMs help cells stick to each ...
. It may play a role in the formation of
axon
An axon (from Greek ἄξων ''áxōn'', axis) or nerve fiber (or nerve fibre: see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, spelling differences) is a long, slender cellular extensions, projection of a nerve cell, or neuron, ...
connections in the
developing nervous system. Several
alternatively spliced
Alternative splicing, alternative RNA splicing, or differential splicing, is an alternative RNA splicing, splicing process during gene expression that allows a single gene to produce different splice variants. For example, some exons of a gene ma ...
transcript variants of this gene have been described, but the full-length nature of some of these variants has not been determined.
Genomics
The gene is located on the short arm of
chromosome 3
Chromosome 3 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans. People normally have two copies of this chromosome. Chromosome 3 spans more than 201 million base pairs (the building material of DNA) and represents about 6.5 percent of the total DNA ...
(3p26.3). It is a single copy gene within the Watson (plus) strand, 957,399 bases in length and encodes a protein of 1026 amino acids (molecular weight 113.454 kDa)
Clinical relevance
Abnormal expression of this gene has been implicated in some cases of
autism
Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...
.
[ ] It has also been associated with cerebellar degeneration in
spinocerebellar ataxia
Spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) is a progressive, degenerative, genetic disease with multiple types, each of which could be considered a neurological condition in its own right. An estimated 150,000 people in the United States have a diagnosis of ...
type 16.
References
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