Component of intercellular desmosome junctions. Involved in the interaction of plaque proteins and intermediate filaments mediating cell-cell adhesion. Expressed in epidermis, brain, liver, skeletal, muscle and testis. Expressed in embryo at 17 dpc. Three calcium ions are usually bound at the interface of each cadherin domain and rigidify the connections, imparting a strong curvature to the full-length ectodomain.