GENE REFERENCE / HGNC:2950

DNAH5

dynein axonemal heavy chain 5

protein-coding gene5p15.2Gene information

What does this gene do?

The DNAH5 gene provides instructions for making a protein that is part of a larger group of proteins (a complex) called dynein. This complex functions within cell structures called cilia. Cilia are microscopic, finger-like projections that stick out from the surface of cells. They are found in cells that line the airway, the reproductive system, and many other organs and tissues. Coordinated back and forth movement of cilia can move the cell or the fluid surrounding the cell. Dynein makes up the structures (arms) that produce the force needed for cilia to move.

Dynein forms structures known as inner dynein arms (IDAs) and outer dynein arms (ODAs) within the core of many cilia (the axoneme). Coordinated movement of the dynein arms causes the entire axoneme to bend back and forth. Within IDAs and ODAs, dynein is made up of different combinations of protein components (subunits) that are classified by weight as heavy, intermediate, or light chains. The DNAH5 gene provides instructions for making the heavy chain 5 protein, which is found in ODAs. Other subunits are produced from different genes.

Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine. Source publication: 2025-09-22. Source review: 2025-09.

ClinGen reviews

ClinGen reviews the evidence linking a particular gene to a condition. Each rating below describes the strength of that link. It does not classify a variant in your DNA file.

Condition	Inheritance	Evidence
primary ciliary dyskinesia 3MONDO:0012085 · Evaluated 2022-01-07	Autosomal recessive	DefinitiveMotile Ciliopathy Gene Curation Expert Panel

ClinVar records

These numbers show what has been submitted to ClinVar. They cannot tell you how likely you are to have a condition.

Submitted alleles: 6,953
Submissions for variants in or overlapping this gene: 11,397
Submissions explicitly reporting this gene: 11,177
Alleles reported pathogenic / likely pathogenic: 1,683
VariationIDs with uncertain significance: 1,565
VariationIDs with conflicting classifications: 605

The rows count different things: alleles, submissions or VariationIDs. Their categories can overlap, so do not add them together. Pathogenic/likely pathogenic counts exclude structural variants that merely overlap a gene. A dash in the source means “not reported,” not zero.

NCBI produces the gene-summary file each week using counts recorded at the start of the month. The numbers may differ from those on the live ClinVar website. Read the field definitions ↗

View this gene in ClinVar ↗

YOUR DNA FILE

Can your DNA file tell you about DNAH5?

From a DNA test kit (such as 23andMe, AncestryDNA or MyHeritage). These kits check a fixed list of about 600,000 to 700,000 positions across your whole genome. ClinVar lists 1,683 alleles in DNAH5 reported as pathogenic or likely pathogenic. A kit checks only some of these positions, and often none of them.

From whole genome sequencing (a VCF file). Sequencing reads most of your genome. Your file lists the places where your DNA differs from the reference genome. Some regions are hard to sequence, including parts of some genes that have near-identical copies elsewhere, and a VCF file does not record which positions were read well.

If a variant is not in your file, that does not mean you don’t have it.

What BioDecode checks

BioDecode compares every variant in your file with ClinVar, on your own computer. For each match, it shows the ClinVar classification, the review status and the condition it was reported for. Your file is not uploaded.

A ClinVar classification applies to one particular variant and the condition it was reported for. It does not tell you about other variants in DNAH5.

BioDecode cannot fill gaps in your test, diagnose a condition or replace clinical testing.

Buy BioDecode See a sample report →Check file compatibility →