Cadherins are calcium-dependent cell adhesion proteins. They preferentially interact with themselves in a homophilic manner in connecting cells; cadherins may thus contribute to the sorting of heterogeneous cell types. B-cadherin may have important functions in neurogenesis, in at least some epithelia, and in embryogenesis. Expressed in a wide variety of tissues. 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.