By randomly sequencing clones obtained from a size-fractionated brain cDNA library, Nagase et al. (1999) cloned DIS3, which they designated KIAA1008. The deduced 928-amino acid protein shares 44.5% identity with the mitotic control protein Dis3 of S. pombe. PCR-ELISA detected low to moderate expression in all tissues and brain regions tested, with highest expression in testis and moderate expression in kidney, ovary, corpus callosum, spinal cord, and fetal brain.
By sequence analysis of chromosome 13q21-q22 to identify a breast cancer susceptibility gene, Rozenblum et al. (2002) identified DIS3. The deduced protein contains 958 amino acids. Northern blot analysis detected ubiquitous expression.