Summary
Cuticle and basement membrane collagens are extracellular matrix components encoded by a family of about 160 genes known to be expressed to which this gene belongs. Collagens have short interrupted blocks of Gly-X-Y sequence flanked by conserved cysteine residues, akin to vertebrate fibril-associated collagens with interrupted triple helix, and are thought to form trimers or higher order polymers. They can be grouped into subfamilies according to homology (Johnstone, 2000). The Caenorhabditis elegans cuticle is a complex multilayered extracellular matrix, consisting predominantly of cuticle collagens and synthesised by the underlying epidermal cell layer (called hypodermis). It is secreted five times during development, in embryos and before each molt. During cuticle synthesis, the genes are expressed in a distinct temporal series, reiterated at each molt, and the temporal groups contribute distinct discrete substructure of the extracellular matrix: The early group of cuticle collagen genes is required for the formation of annuli, it includes DPY-2, 3, 7, 8 and 10, and peaks in mRNA abundance about 4 h before the new cuticle is secreted; these 5 proteins localise in the annuli of the outermost layer of cuticle, right above the actin bundles in the epidermal cell. The intermediate group includes DPY-5 and DPY-13, peaks about 2 hours later, and these collagens go below and in between the annuli (McMahon et al, 2003). For a small number of collagen genes, with no distinctive sequence feature, but certainly critical to assembly or function of the extracellular matrix, such as the DPY genes above, loss of function causes a change in body shape (dumpy, squat or long), or leads to animals that roll when moving (alae helically twisted), or to male ray morphology defects. Some collagens that participate in the inner basement membranes are essential for viability, or play a critical role in synaptogenesis, muscle attachment, cell migration and process guidance. But most other collagens probably have a redundant role, since loss of their function is apparently wild type, and alleles with visible effects in these genes are gain of function mutations. [Main specialists: Iain Johnstone and Jim Kramer; Don Riddle, Ann Rose, Bob Horvitz, Sidney Brenner][Wormbase] dpy-7 encodes a cuticular collagen; DPY-7 functions as a structural constituent of the extracellular cuticle whose activity is required for normal cuticular morphology and hence, proper body form.
Wormbase predicts one model.

AceView summary
According to AceView, this gene is expressed at high level, 2.6 times the average gene in this release, mostly or only in embryos [Kohara cDNAs], in epidermal cells from the embryonic comma stage on, i.e part of the "early" group, expressed about 4 hours before cuticle secretion [Gilleard et al, 1997]. The protein, part of the early group, is first perinuclear (endoplasmic reticulum) in dorsal hyp7, ventral P and lateral V hypodermal cells, then secreted from the apical surface and found tightly localised in dorsal and ventral cuticular annuli of the L1 and other larval stages, but at all relevant stages (L1, dauer, adult), it is not found near the lateral alae [McMahon et al, 2003]. The sequence of this gene is defined by 34 cDNA clones, some from whole worm (seen once).
The gene contains 1 gt-ag intron. Transcription produces one mRNA. There are 2 validated alternative polyadenylation sites (see the diagram).
The spliced mRNA putatively encodes a good protein, containing domains collagen triple helix repeat, nematode cuticle collagen, N-terminal [Pfam].
Function: There are 12 articles specifically referring to this gene in PubMed. In addition we point below to 43 abstracts. This gene is associated to a phenotype (DumPY : shorter than wild-type, EGg Laying defective, UNCoordinated locomotion). Proteins are expected to have molecular function (structural constituent of cuticle).

Please quote: AceView: a comprehensive cDNA-supported gene and transcripts annotation, Genome Biology 2006, 7(Suppl 1):S12

Map: This gene dpy-7 maps on chomosome X at position -1.65 (measured by recombination), -1.34 (interpolated). In AceView, it covers 1.34 kb, from 7537739 to 7536403 (WS190), on the reverse strand.
Links to: WormBase, NextDB, RNAiDB.
Other names: The gene is also known in Wormgenes/AceView by its positional name XI156, in Wormbase by its cosmid.number name F46C8.6, in NextDB, the Nematode expression pattern database, as CEYK2578.

The closest mouse gene, according to BlastP, is the AceView gene C1qc (e=0.015)

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