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. 1987 Dec 1;6(12):3655–3661. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1987.tb02698.x

Isolation of placental cadherin cDNA: identification of a novel gene family of cell-cell adhesion molecules.

A Nose 1, A Nagafuchi 1, M Takeichi 1
PMCID: PMC553834  PMID: 3428270

Abstract

Ca2+-dependent cell--cell adhesion molecules, termed cadherins, are classified into subclasses with different tissue distributions and distinct cell--cell binding specificities. We report the cloning of cDNA encoding a cadherin present in the placenta which is called P-cadherin. The deduced sequence encodes a polypeptide of 822 amino acids with the characteristic features of integral membrane proteins. A computer search of the amino acid sequence homology of P-cadherin against itself showed that this molecule contains internal repeats in the extracellular domain. Comparison of the primary structure of P-cadherin with that of the epithelial cadherin (E-cadherin) showed that there is 58% homology in their amino acid sequences. These results provide evidence for our hypothesis that cadherins constitute a gene family.

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