Conflict on the sex chromosomes: cause, effect, and complexity
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Updated: Apr 23, 2026

Manipulation of Ploidy in Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: March 15, 2018
Judith E Mank1, David J Hosken2, Nina Wedell2
1Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
Intralocus sexual conflict and intragenomic conflict both affect sex chromosome evolution and can in extreme cases even cause the complete turnover of sex chromosomes. Additionally, established sex chromosomes often become the focus of heightened conflict. This creates a tangled relationship between sex chromosomes and conflict with respect to cause and effect. To further complicate matters, sexual and intragenomic conflict may exacerbate one another and thereby further fuel sex chromosome change. Different magnitudes and foci of conflict offer potential explanations for lineage-specific variation in sex chromosome evolution and answer long-standing questions as to why some sex chromosomes are remarkably stable, whereas others show rapid rates of evolutionary change.
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