The encoded protein is a subunit of the hydrophobic protein fraction of the NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase (complex 1), the first enzyme complex in the electron transport chain located in the inner mitochondrial membrane, and may be involved in regulating complex I activity or its assembly via assistance in redox processes. Mutations in this gene are associated with Leigh syndrome, an early-onset progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants.