GEMIN7 (gem-associated protein 7) is a small subunit of the SMN complex, the cytoplasmic assembly machine that loads the heptameric Sm protein ring onto the Sm site of small nuclear RNAs to form the core of spliceosomal snRNPs. GEMIN7 forms a heterodimer with GEMIN6 in which both proteins adopt Sm-like folds without Sm sequence similarity; it binds SMN directly through arginine/glycine-rich sequence, links GEMIN6 to the complex, contacts GEMIN8 and UNRIP/STRAP, and binds several Sm proteins, in particular SmE (SNRPE). GEMIN8 bound to the SMN oligomer recruits the GEMIN6-GEMIN7 pair, an arrangement conserved from fission yeast to mammals. GEMIN7 is found in the cytoplasm, where Sm-core assembly occurs, and in the nucleoplasm and nuclear gems. No RNA-binding or catalytic activity of GEMIN7 itself has been shown. The donkey entry A0A9L0ICL9 is a 206-residue alternative transcript model of the GEMIN7 gene whose C-terminal 131 residues are identical to the 131-residue canonical-length donkey product (A0A9L0J5X5), which is 88% identical to human GEMIN7; the 75-residue N-terminal extension has no counterpart in human or horse GEMIN7.
Summary: Spliceosomal snRNP assembly, transferred by TreeGrafter from PANTHER node PTN001428136 (family PTHR14679, subfamily SF1, which contains human, mouse, bovine and fission yeast GEMIN7). The PAINT IBA on human GEMIN7 for this term is seeded by human GEMIN7 and S. pombe Gem7, both experimentally placed in the SMN complex.
Reason: Core process. GEMIN7 is a subunit of the assembly machine itself and contacts Sm proteins directly, so it does some of the work of Sm-core assembly rather than being a substrate. The donkey protein is in the same PANTHER subfamily (PTHR14679:SF1) as the characterised human and S. pombe proteins, and the Gemin6/7 recruitment by Gemin8 on the SMN platform is conserved from fission yeast to human, so the PAINT placement deep in the family is well founded.
Summary: RNA binding, from the combined automated pipeline (InterPro Sm-domain entry IPR047575 plus a UniRule). GEMIN7 adopts an Sm-like fold and heterodimerizes with GEMIN6, but has no significant sequence similarity to Sm proteins, and no RNA-binding activity of GEMIN7 has been reported.
Reason: The mapping assumes that an Sm fold implies Sm-site RNA binding. Documented GEMIN7 interactions are with proteins (GEMIN6, SMN, GEMIN8, UNRIP and Sm proteins); within the SMN complex snRNA recognition is attributed to GEMIN5 and SMN/Gemin2 handle the Sm proteins. Human GEMIN7 carries RNA binding only from the same InterPro mapping, and PAINT did not place RNA binding at the GEMIN7 node although it placed the process and complex terms there. Not supported for GEMIN7 itself.
Summary: Cytoplasm, from UniProt subcellular-location mapping. GEMIN7 colocalizes with SMN in the cytoplasm, where snRNP core assembly takes place.
Reason: Experimentally supported for human GEMIN7 (PMID:12065586) and the site of the SMN complex's assembly function. Human GEMIN7 is also annotated to cytosol, but no quotable source for that refinement is cached here, so cytoplasm is retained at the precision the cited evidence supports.
Summary: SMN-Sm protein complex, from InterPro2GO (IPR020338, SMN complex Gemin7, which corresponds to PANTHER PTHR14679). Human GEMIN7 is part of the SMN-Sm complex.
Reason: Experimentally supported for human GEMIN7; the donkey protein retains the complete Gemin7 region. The core SMN complex (GO:0032797) is a descendant of this term; human GEMIN7 carries it by IDA, but it is not in the donkey GOA and PAINT did not place it at the family node, so it is not proposed here.
Summary: Sm-like protein family complex, from the TreeGrafter PANTHER node. This term is a general ancestor of SMN-Sm protein complex and SMN complex.
Reason: True but general. The specific complex that GEMIN7 belongs to, SMN-Sm protein complex (GO:0034719), is a descendant of this term and is already carried by this gene (InterPro2GO row, accepted above), so the general family-complex term is refined to it. The PAINT node chose the general term for a clade spanning fungi and animals; GEMIN7 is in the SMN complex in both S. pombe and human, so the refinement to the SMN-Sm complex does not go beyond what the clade supports.
consisting of SMN, Gemin2, 6, 7, 8 and Sm proteins
Core Functions
Subunit of the SMN complex that, as an Sm-like heterodimer with GEMIN6 recruited by GEMIN8, links GEMIN6 to SMN, contacts Sm proteins and supports SMN-complex-catalysed assembly of the Sm core of spliceosomal snRNPs in the cytoplasm.
Q: Does the Gemin6-Gemin7 Sm-like heterodimer contact snRNA during Sm-ring assembly, or is it purely a protein-protein adaptor for Sm proteins?
Q: Is the 75-residue N-terminal extension of the donkey A0A9L0ICL9 transcript model translated, or does the true start codon correspond to the conserved Met of the 131-residue product A0A9L0J5X5?
Q: Should the core SMN complex term (GO:0032797), which human GEMIN7 carries by IDA, be placed at the PAINT GEMIN7 node alongside the general Sm-like protein family complex, given that S. pombe Gem7 is also an SMN complex subunit?
Suggested Experiments
Experiment: Test purified GEMIN6-GEMIN7 heterodimer for binding to U snRNA Sm-site oligonucleotides by electrophoretic mobility shift or fluorescence anisotropy, with Sm protein rings as positive controls.
External Prediction Reviews
These computational predictions are reviewed separately from the GOA annotation set used for this review. The assessments below are from this project and do not constitute official GO annotations or endorsement by GO/UniProt. They are not included in the existing annotation review above.
Assessment of 1 ProtNLM2 GO prediction for donkey GEMIN7 (A0A9L0ICL9), judged against the donkey GOA record (spliceosomal snRNP assembly, SMN-Sm protein complex, Sm-like protein family complex, RNA binding, cytoplasm, nucleoplasm, Gemini of Cajal bodies), the human ortholog Q9H840 and cached SMN-complex studies (PMID:12065586, PMID:17178713), and a donkey-human alignment (88% identity over the complete human sequence). Sm-like protein family complex is correct and is itself in donkey GOA, but the GOA record also carries its more specific descendant SMN-Sm protein complex, so the prediction is scored as less precise (LSP). Non-GO ProtNLM2 output, not scored: subcellular location 'Nucleus', consistent with the nucleoplasm and gem localization of human GEMIN7 but omitting its cytoplasmic pool. No function text was emitted for this accession.
LSP — Less precise than existing annotation Review score: 2/2
Prediction method: ProtNLM2 · Version: UniProt API snapshot 2026-10-14
Review rationale: Human GEMIN7 is a core SMN-complex subunit that binds SMN, GEMIN6 and Sm proteins (PMID:12065586) and sits at the centre of the complex with SMN and GEMIN8 (PMID:17178713); the donkey protein covers the complete human sequence at 88% identity. Membership of an Sm-like protein family complex is therefore correct. The exact term is present in donkey GOA (TreeGrafter), but donkey GOA also carries SMN-Sm protein complex, a more specific descendant of this term, so the prediction is correct but less precise than an existing annotation. Training-set membership is unknown.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:12065586: "Gemin7 is a component of the SMN complex"
PMID:17178713: "SMN, Gemin8, and Gemin7 in its center"