RAD21, HR21, KIAA0078, NXP1, Double-strand-break repair protein rad21 homolog, hHR21, Nuclear matrix protein 1, NXP-1, SCC1 homolog
Rad21 is one of the major cohesin subunits that holds sister chromatids together until anaphase, when proteolytic cleavage by separase, a caspaselike enzyme, allows chromosomal separation. Rad21 interacts with Rec8 to form a cohesin complex that functions in sister chromatid alignment. Rad21 is also involved in the repair of double-strand breaks in DNA and is essential for mitotic growth. Rad21 undergoes a C-terminal cleavage induced by diverse stimuli right before apoptosis.
