chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 7
Last updated 26 Sept 2025
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The CHD7 gene provides instructions for making a protein called chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 7. This protein is found in many parts of the body before birth, including the eye, the inner ear, and the brain. In the brain, the CHD7 protein is active in several areas, including a bundle of nerve cells (neurons) called the olfactory bulb that is critical for the perception of odors.
Normal function
The CHD7 gene provides instructions for making a protein called chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 7. This protein is found in many parts of the body before birth, including the eye, the inner ear, and the brain. In the brain, the CHD7 protein is active in several areas, including a bundle of nerve cells (neurons) called the olfactory bulb that is critical for the perception of odors.
The CHD7 protein belongs to a family of proteins that are thought to play a role in the organisation of chromatin. Chromatin is the complex of DNA and protein that packages DNA into chromosomes. The CHD7 protein regulates the activity (expression) of several other genes through a process known as chromatin remodeling. The structure of chromatin can be changed (remodeled) to alter how tightly DNA is packaged. When DNA is tightly packed, gene expression is lower than when DNA is loosely packed. Researchers are working to determine which genes the CHD7 protein regulates.
Conditions referring to this gene or chromosome
Other names
CHD7_HUMAN
FLJ20357
FLJ20361
IS3
KIAA1416
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Further reading and references
- chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 7; MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine.
- Balasubramanian R, Choi JH, Francescatto L, Willer J, Horton ER, Asimacopoulos EP, Stankovic KM, Plummer L, Buck CL, Quinton R, Nebesio TD, Mericq V, Merino PM, Meyer BF, Monies D, Gusella JF, Al Tassan N, Katsanis N, Crowley WF Jr. Functionally compromised CHD7 alleles in patients with isolated GnRH deficiency. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Dec 16;111(50):17953-8. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1417438111. Epub 2014 Dec 3.
- Balasubramanian R, Crowley WF Jr. Isolated Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone (GnRH) Deficiency. 2007 May 23 [updated 2022 May 12]. In: Adam MP, Bick S, Mirzaa GM, Wallace SE, Amemiya A, editors. GeneReviews(R) [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2026. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1334/
- Bergman JE, de Ronde W, Jongmans MC, Wolffenbuttel BH, Drop SL, Hermus A, Bocca G, Hoefsloot LH, van Ravenswaaij-Arts CM. The results of CHD7 analysis in clinically well-characterized patients with Kallmann syndrome. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2012 May;97(5):E858-62. doi: 10.1210/jc.2011-2652. Epub 2012 Mar 7.
- Bergman JE, Janssen N, Hoefsloot LH, Jongmans MC, Hofstra RM, van Ravenswaaij-Arts CM. CHD7 mutations and CHARGE syndrome: the clinical implications of an expanding phenotype. J Med Genet. 2011 May;48(5):334-42. doi: 10.1136/jmg.2010.087106. Epub 2011 Mar 4.
- Bouazoune K, Kingston RE. Chromatin remodeling by the CHD7 protein is impaired by mutations that cause human developmental disorders. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Nov 20;109(47):19238-43. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1213825109. Epub 2012 Nov 7.
- Jongmans MC, van Ravenswaaij-Arts CM, Pitteloud N, Ogata T, Sato N, Claahsen-van der Grinten HL, van der Donk K, Seminara S, Bergman JE, Brunner HG, Crowley WF Jr, Hoefsloot LH. CHD7 mutations in patients initially diagnosed with Kallmann syndrome--the clinical overlap with CHARGE syndrome. Clin Genet. 2009 Jan;75(1):65-71. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-0004.2008.01107.x. Epub 2008 Nov 17.
- Kim HG, Kurth I, Lan F, Meliciani I, Wenzel W, Eom SH, Kang GB, Rosenberger G, Tekin M, Ozata M, Bick DP, Sherins RJ, Walker SL, Shi Y, Gusella JF, Layman LC. Mutations in CHD7, encoding a chromatin-remodeling protein, cause idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and Kallmann syndrome. Am J Hum Genet. 2008 Oct;83(4):511-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2008.09.005. Epub 2008 Oct 2.
- Lalani SR, Safiullah AM, Fernbach SD, Harutyunyan KG, Thaller C, Peterson LE, McPherson JD, Gibbs RA, White LD, Hefner M, Davenport SL, Graham JM, Bacino CA, Glass NL, Towbin JA, Craigen WJ, Neish SR, Lin AE, Belmont JW. Spectrum of CHD7 mutations in 110 individuals with CHARGE syndrome and genotype-phenotype correlation. Am J Hum Genet. 2006 Feb;78(2):303-14. doi: 10.1086/500273. Epub 2005 Dec 29.
- Marcos S, Sarfati J, Leroy C, Fouveaut C, Parent P, Metz C, Wolczynski S, Gerard M, Bieth E, Kurtz F, Verier-Mine O, Perrin L, Archambeaud F, Cabrol S, Rodien P, Hove H, Prescott T, Lacombe D, Christin-Maitre S, Touraine P, Hieronimus S, Dewailly D, Young J, Pugeat M, Hardelin JP, Dode C. The prevalence of CHD7 missense versus truncating mutations is higher in patients with Kallmann syndrome than in typical CHARGE patients. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2014 Oct;99(10):E2138-43. doi: 10.1210/jc.2014-2110. Epub 2014 Jul 31.
- Schulz Y, Wehner P, Opitz L, Salinas-Riester G, Bongers EM, van Ravenswaaij-Arts CM, Wincent J, Schoumans J, Kohlhase J, Borchers A, Pauli S. CHD7, the gene mutated in CHARGE syndrome, regulates genes involved in neural crest cell guidance. Hum Genet. 2014 Aug;133(8):997-1009. doi: 10.1007/s00439-014-1444-2. Epub 2014 Apr 13.
- van Ravenswaaij-Arts CM, Hefner M, Blake K, Martin DM. CHD7 Disorder. 2006 Oct 2 [updated 2025 Aug 14]. In: Adam MP, Bick S, Mirzaa GM, Wallace SE, Amemiya A, editors. GeneReviews(R) [Internet]. Seattle (WA): University of Washington, Seattle; 1993-2026. Available from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1117/
- Vissers LE, van Ravenswaaij CM, Admiraal R, Hurst JA, de Vries BB, Janssen IM, van der Vliet WA, Huys EH, de Jong PJ, Hamel BC, Schoenmakers EF, Brunner HG, Veltman JA, van Kessel AG. Mutations in a new member of the chromodomain gene family cause CHARGE syndrome. Nat Genet. 2004 Sep;36(9):955-7. doi: 10.1038/ng1407. Epub 2004 Aug 8.
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