InterPro domain: IPR010304

This family consists of several eukaryotic survival motor neuron (SMN) proteins. The Survival of Motor Neurons (SMN) protein, the product of the spinal muscular atrophy-determining gene, is part of a large macromolecular complex (SMN complex) that functions in the assembly of spliceosomal small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs). The SMN complex functions as a specificity factor essential for the efficient assembly of Sm proteins on U snRNAs and likely protects cells from illicit, and potentially deleterious, non-specific binding of Sm proteins to RNAs [ 1 ].

1. An assembly chaperone collaborates with the SMN complex to generate spliceosomal SnRNPs. Cell 135, 497-509