Enables protein folding chaperone. Involved in protein folding. Acts upstream of or within binding activity of sperm to zona pellucida; negative regulation of cysteine-type endopeptidase activity involved in apoptotic process; and response to heat. Located in cell body and mitochondrion. Part of zona pellucida receptor complex. Is expressed in early conceptus; embryo; and humerus. Human ortholog(s) of this gene implicated in several diseases, including brain ischemia; obesity; toxic shock syndrome; type 2 diabetes mellitus; and urinary tract infection. Orthologous to human HSPA1B (heat shock protein family A (Hsp70) member 1B). [provided by Alliance of Genome Resources, Apr 2022]