Background of the antigen
Protocadherins are a large family of cadherin-like cell adhesion proteins that are involved in the establishment and maintenance of neuronal connections in the brain. There are three protocadherin gene clusters, designated alpha, beta and gamma, all of which contain multiple tandemly arranged genes. PCDH21 (protocadherin 21), also known as PRCAD, is an 859 amino acid single-pass membrane protein that localizes to the outer segments of photoreceptor cells and contains six cadherin domains. Existing as multiple alternatively spliced isoforms, PCDH21 functions as a calcium-dependent cell adhesion protein that is thought to be required for the structural integrity of photoreceptor cells and may be involved in the formation and maintenance of neuronal networks.
