The product of this gene is a serine/threonine protein kinase related to kinases involved in cell cycle regulation. Studies of the mouse and rat homologs have localized the kinase to the chromosomes during meiosis in spermatogenesis, specifically to the synaptonemal complex that exists while homologous chromosomes are paired. Mutations in this gene have been associated with ciliary defects resulting in retinitis pigmentosa 62. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants. [provided by RefSeq, Jan 2016].