REC8 Homolog (REC8)

REC8 encodes a member of the kleisin family of SMC protein partners. The protein localizes to the axial elements of chromosomes during meiosis in both oocytes and spermatocytes. In the mouse, the homologous protein is a key component of the meiotic cohesion complex, which regulates sister chromatid cohesion and recombination between homologous chromosomes. Multiple alternatively spliced variants, encoding the same protein, have been found for this gene.The deduced 547-amino acid protein has a high proline content, a nuclear localization signal, and a putative PEST sequence. REC8L1 shares about 26% amino acid identity with RAD21. Northern blot analysis detected a 2.4-kb transcript in postmeiotic mouse testis and transcripts of about 2.4 and 3.2 kb in human thymus.