LAIR 2 is a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily. It was identified by its similarity to LAIR1, an inhibitory receptor present on mononuclear leukocytes. This gene maps to a region of 19q13.4, termed the leukocyte receptor cluster, which contains 29 genes in the immunoglobulin superfamily, including LAIR1.
The function of this protein is unknown, although it is thought to be secreted and may help modulate mucosal tolerance. Two transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been found for this gene.By screening a human T-cell cDNA library,Meyaard et al. isolated a LAIR2 cDNA. The predicted LAIR2 protein contains 1 immunoglobulin-like domain, which is 84% homologous to that of LAIR1; it lacks both a transmembrane and a cytoplasmic domain, and therefore the authors suggested that it is secreted.