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Sex chromosome
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Sex chromosome
Sex chromosomes (also referred to as allosomes, heterotypical chromosome, gonosomes, heterochromosomes, or idiochromosomes) are chromosomes that carry the genes that determine the sex of an individual. The human sex chromosomes are a typical pair of mammal allosomes. They differ from autosomes in form, size, and behavior. Whereas autosomes occur in homologous pairs whose members have the same form in a diploid cell, members of an allosome pair may differ from one another.
Nettie Stevens and Edmund Beecher Wilson both independently discovered sex chromosomes in 1905. However, Stevens is credited for discovering them earlier than Wilson.
In humans, each cell nucleus contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, a total of 46 chromosomes. The first 22 pairs are called autosomes. Autosomes are homologous chromosomes i.e. chromosomes which contain the same genes (regions of DNA) in the same order along their chromosomal arms. The 23rd pair of chromosomes are called allosomes. These consist of two X chromosomes in females, and an X chromosome and a Y chromosome in males. Females therefore have 23 homologous chromosome pairs, while males have 22. The X and Y chromosomes have small regions of homology called pseudoautosomal regions.
An X chromosome is always present as the 23rd chromosome in the ovum, while either an X or Y chromosome may be present in an individual sperm. Early in female embryonic development, in cells other than egg cells, one of the X chromosomes is randomly and permanently partially deactivated: In some cells, the X chromosome inherited from the mother deactivates; in other cells, it is the X chromosome inherited from the father. This ensures that both sexes always have exactly one functional copy of an X chromosome in each body cell. The deactivated X chromosome is silenced by repressive heterochromatin that compacts the DNA and prevents expression of most genes. This compaction is regulated by PRC2 (Polycomb Repressive Complex 2).
All diploid organisms with allosome-determined sex get half of their allosomes from each of their parents. In most mammals, females are XX, and can pass along either of their Xs; since males are XY they can pass along either an X or a Y. Females in such species receive an X chromosome from each parent while males receive an X chromosome from their mother and a Y chromosome from their father. It is thus the male's sperm that determines the sex of each offspring in such species.
A small percentage of humans have divergent sexual development, known as intersex. This can result from a genotype that is neither XX nor XY. It can also occur when two fertilized embryo fuse, producing a chimera that might contain two different sets of DNA, one XX and the other XY. It could also result from exposure, often in utero, to chemicals that disrupt the normal influence of the allosomes on production of sex hormones, and lead to the development of either ambiguous outer genitalia or internal organs.
There is a gene in the Y chromosome that has regulatory sequences that control genes that code for maleness, called the SRY gene. This gene produces a testis-determining factor ("TDF"), which initiates testis development in humans and other mammals. The SRY sequence's prominence in sex determination was discovered when the genetics of sex-reversed XX men (i.e. humans who possess biological male-traits but actually have XX allosomes) were studied. After examination, it was discovered that the difference between a typical XX individual (traditional female) and a sex-reversed XX man was that the typical individuals lacked the SRY gene. It is theorized that in sex-reversed XX men, the SRY gets translocated to an X chromosome in the XX pair during meiosis.
Diverse mechanisms are involved in the determination of sex in animals. For mammals, sex determination is carried by the genetic contribution of the spermatozoon. Many lower chordates, such as fish, amphibians and reptiles, have systems that are influenced by the environment. Fish and amphibians, for example, have genetic sex determination but their sex can also be influenced by externally available steroids and incubation temperature of eggs. In some reptiles, e.g. sea turtles, only the incubation temperature determines sex (temperature-dependent sex determination).
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Sex chromosome
Sex chromosomes (also referred to as allosomes, heterotypical chromosome, gonosomes, heterochromosomes, or idiochromosomes) are chromosomes that carry the genes that determine the sex of an individual. The human sex chromosomes are a typical pair of mammal allosomes. They differ from autosomes in form, size, and behavior. Whereas autosomes occur in homologous pairs whose members have the same form in a diploid cell, members of an allosome pair may differ from one another.
Nettie Stevens and Edmund Beecher Wilson both independently discovered sex chromosomes in 1905. However, Stevens is credited for discovering them earlier than Wilson.
In humans, each cell nucleus contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, a total of 46 chromosomes. The first 22 pairs are called autosomes. Autosomes are homologous chromosomes i.e. chromosomes which contain the same genes (regions of DNA) in the same order along their chromosomal arms. The 23rd pair of chromosomes are called allosomes. These consist of two X chromosomes in females, and an X chromosome and a Y chromosome in males. Females therefore have 23 homologous chromosome pairs, while males have 22. The X and Y chromosomes have small regions of homology called pseudoautosomal regions.
An X chromosome is always present as the 23rd chromosome in the ovum, while either an X or Y chromosome may be present in an individual sperm. Early in female embryonic development, in cells other than egg cells, one of the X chromosomes is randomly and permanently partially deactivated: In some cells, the X chromosome inherited from the mother deactivates; in other cells, it is the X chromosome inherited from the father. This ensures that both sexes always have exactly one functional copy of an X chromosome in each body cell. The deactivated X chromosome is silenced by repressive heterochromatin that compacts the DNA and prevents expression of most genes. This compaction is regulated by PRC2 (Polycomb Repressive Complex 2).
All diploid organisms with allosome-determined sex get half of their allosomes from each of their parents. In most mammals, females are XX, and can pass along either of their Xs; since males are XY they can pass along either an X or a Y. Females in such species receive an X chromosome from each parent while males receive an X chromosome from their mother and a Y chromosome from their father. It is thus the male's sperm that determines the sex of each offspring in such species.
A small percentage of humans have divergent sexual development, known as intersex. This can result from a genotype that is neither XX nor XY. It can also occur when two fertilized embryo fuse, producing a chimera that might contain two different sets of DNA, one XX and the other XY. It could also result from exposure, often in utero, to chemicals that disrupt the normal influence of the allosomes on production of sex hormones, and lead to the development of either ambiguous outer genitalia or internal organs.
There is a gene in the Y chromosome that has regulatory sequences that control genes that code for maleness, called the SRY gene. This gene produces a testis-determining factor ("TDF"), which initiates testis development in humans and other mammals. The SRY sequence's prominence in sex determination was discovered when the genetics of sex-reversed XX men (i.e. humans who possess biological male-traits but actually have XX allosomes) were studied. After examination, it was discovered that the difference between a typical XX individual (traditional female) and a sex-reversed XX man was that the typical individuals lacked the SRY gene. It is theorized that in sex-reversed XX men, the SRY gets translocated to an X chromosome in the XX pair during meiosis.
Diverse mechanisms are involved in the determination of sex in animals. For mammals, sex determination is carried by the genetic contribution of the spermatozoon. Many lower chordates, such as fish, amphibians and reptiles, have systems that are influenced by the environment. Fish and amphibians, for example, have genetic sex determination but their sex can also be influenced by externally available steroids and incubation temperature of eggs. In some reptiles, e.g. sea turtles, only the incubation temperature determines sex (temperature-dependent sex determination).
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