Background information
Copine 9 is a 503 amino acid member of the copine family of evolutionarily conserved, soluble, calcium-dependent, membrane-binding proteins. Members of the copine family are involved in signal transduction and membrane trafficking. Arabidopsis thaliana mutants lacking copine proteins exhibit reduced cell number and smaller cell size, effects which may be due to a defect in vesicle fusion or transport. Copine 9 contains two N-terminal C2 domains and one C-terminal VWFA (von Willebrand factor A) domain, which is also referred to as the A domain or the core domain. As is characteristic of the copine family, copine 9 functions in membrane trafficking and is capable of binding phospholipids in a calcium-dependent manner.
