Component of the 26S proteasome, a multiprotein complex involved in the ATP-dependent degradation of ubiquitinated proteins. This complex plays a key role in the maintenance of protein homeostasis by removing misfolded or damaged proteins, which could impair cellular functions, and by removing proteins whose functions are no longer required. Therefore, the proteasome participates in numerous cellular processes, including cell cycle progression, apoptosis, or DNA damage repair. PSMC5 belongs to the heterohexameric ring of AAA (ATPases associated with diverse cellular activities) proteins that unfolds ubiquitinated target proteins that are concurrently translocated into a proteolytic chamber and degraded into peptides.