Zinc-finger proteins contain DNA-binding domains and have a wide variety of functions, most of which encompass some form of transcriptional activation or repression. ZSWIM1 (zinc finger SWIM domain-containing protein 1), also known as C20orf162, is a 485 amino acid protein that contains one SWIM-type zinc finger. The gene encoding ZSWIM1 maps to human chromosome 20. Comprising approximately 2% of the human genome, chromosome 20 contains nearly 63 million bases that encode over 600 genes, some of which are associated with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy, ring chromosome 20 epilepsy syndrome and Alagille syndrome. Additionally, chromosome 20 contains a region with numerous genes which are thought important for seminal production and may be potential targets for male contraception.
