Juvenile neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis (JNCL) or Batten/Spielmeyer-Vogt-Sjogren 
disease (OMIM #204200) is one of a group of nine clinically related inherited 
neurodegenerative disorders (CLN1-9). JNCL results from mutations in CLN3 on 
chromosome 16p12.1. The neuronal loss in Batten disease has been shown to be due 
to a combination of apoptosis and autophagy suggesting that CLN3P, the defective 
protein, may have an anti-neuronal death function. PANDER (PANcreatic-DERived 
factor) is a novel cytokine that was recently cloned from pancreatic islet 
cells. PANDER is specifically expressed in the pancreatic islets, small 
intestine, testis, prostate, and neurons of the central nervous system, and has 
been demonstrated to induce apoptosis. In this study, we over-expressed CLN3P in 
SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells and monitored the effects on PANDER-induced 
apoptosis. CLN3P significantly increased the survival rate of the SH-SY5Y cells 
in this system. This study provides additional evidence that the function of 
CLN3P is related to preventing neuronal apoptosis.