This gene encodes a member of the cadherin family of proteins that forms an integral transmembrane component of desmosomes, the multiprotein complexes involved in cell adhesion, organization of the cytoskeleton, cell sorting and cell signaling. This gene is expressed in the suprabasal epidermis and hair follicle. The encoded preproprotein undergoes proteolytic processing to generate a mature, functional protein. Certain mutations in this gene are responsible for the lanceolate hair phenotype in mice. This gene is located in a cluster of desmosomal cadherin genes on chromosome 18. [provided by RefSeq, Feb 2016]