The protein encoded by this gene is an evolutionarily conserved protein similar to yeast SSF1 as well as to the gene product of the Drosophila gene peter pan (ppan). SSF1 is known to be involved in the second step of mRNA splicing. Both SSF1 and ppan are essential for cell growth and proliferation. Exogenous expression of this gene was reported to reduce the anchorage-independent growth of some tumor cells. Read-through transcription of this gene with P2RY11/P2Y(11), an adjacent downstream gene that encodes an ATP receptor, has been found. These read-through transcripts are ubiquitously present and up-regulated during granulocyte differentiation.