SSDP1 gene encodes a protein with a conserved N-terminal FORWARD domain.

I describe the characterization of mouse, human and chicken SSDP1 orthologs that encode a highly conserved protein with over 90% identity at the amino acid level. Structurally, the protein consists of a well-preserved FWD (FORWARD)-domain at the N-terminal end and a proline-, glycine-, methionine- and serine-rich sequence in the central and C-terminal regions. The FORWARD domain, comprised of three alpha-helices, is characterized by the presence of a FWD-box of unknown function conserved not only in vertebrates, but also in nematode, plants, fly and yeast. Human SSDP1 spans about 200 kb on the chromosome 1p31-p32 region and consists of 17 exons. The SSDP1 mRNA transcripts are distributed ubiquitously in adult human and mouse tissues.