[5] It is a member of the DOCK-C subfamily of the DOCK family of guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) which function as activators of small G-proteins.

Dock7 and other DOCK family proteins differ from other GEFs in that they do not possess the canonical structure of tandem DH-PH domains known to elicit nucleotide exchange.

There is evidence that the production of PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 by members of the Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) family is important for efficient recruitment of Dock7 since the PI3K inhibitor LY294002 was shown to block Dock7-dependent functions in neurons.

[7] In Schwann cells (which generate an insulating layer, known as the myelin sheath, around axons of the peripheral nervous system) Dock7 appears to be activated downstream of the neuregulin receptor ErbB2, which receives signals from the axon that induce Schwann cell proliferation, migration and myelination.

A study of Dock7 in HEK 293 cells and hippocampal neurons has shown that it can bind and promote nucleotide exchange on the Rac subfamily isoforms Rac1 and Rac3.