NALP proteins are cytoplasmic proteins that form a subfamily within the larger CATERPILLER family and are thought to play a crucial role in cell proliferation and reproduction. Like all other NALP family members, NALP8 has a C-terminal leucine-rich repeat (LRR) region, an N-terminal Pyrin domain (PYD) followed by a NACHT domain, and a NACHT-associated domain. It maps to chromosome 19q13.42 and is thought to be expressed in testis and ovary, suggesting that NALP8 may be involved in reproduction. Surprisingly, NALP8 seems to be universal in mammals except for rodents, suggesting that the gene may have been lost during evolution.Synonyms: LRR and PYD domains-containing protein 8, NACHT, NLRP8, NOD16, PAN4, PYRIN and NACHT-containing protein 4