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Related Concept Videos

X and Y Chromosomes02:32

X and Y Chromosomes

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Among mammals, the gender of an organism is determined by the sex chromosomes. Humans have two sex chromosomes, X and Y. Every human diploid cell has 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes. A human female has two X chromosomes, while a male has one X chromosome and one Y chromosome.
The germline cells such as egg and sperm cells carry only half the number of chromosomes, i.e., 22 autosomes and one sex chromosome. All eggs have an X chromosome, while sperm cells can carry an X or...
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The Y chromosome is a sex chromosome found in several vertebrates and mammals, including humans. In addition to 22 pairs of autosomes, the human males have one X chromosome and one Y chromosome. In these organisms, the presence or absence of the Y chromosome determines the development of male traits.
Evolution
Around 300 million years ago, the two sex chromosomes diverged from two identical autosomal chromosomes. Over time, the Y chromosome has lost most of its genes, shrinking in size....
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In most organisms, sex is determined by the ratio of X and Y chromosomes. However, in some organisms, such as Drosophila and C.elegans, sex is determined by the ratio of the number of X chromosomes to the number of sets of autosomes. The Y chromosome in Drosophila is active but does not determine sex. It contains genes responsible for the production of sperms in adult flies.  
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Synteny and Evolution02:31

Synteny and Evolution

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John H. Renwick first coined the term “synteny” in 1971, which refers to the genes present on the same chromosomes, even if they are not genetically linked. The species with common ancestry tend to show conserved syntenic regions. Therefore, the concept of synteny is nowadays used to describe the evolutionary relationship between species.
Around 80 million years ago, the human and mice lineages diverged from the common ancestor. During the course of evolution, the ancestral...
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X-Inactivation

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The human X chromosome contains over ten times the number of genes as in the Y chromosome. Since males have only one X chromosome, and females have two, one might expect females to produce twice as many of the proteins, with undesirable results.
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The pig X and Y Chromosomes: structure, sequence, and evolution.

Benjamin M Skinner1, Carole A Sargent1, Carol Churcher2

  • 1Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1QP, United Kingdom;

Genome Research
|November 13, 2015
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers improved the pig X chromosome assembly and annotation and drafted the Y chromosome sequence. This study reveals conserved gene order and identifies novel pig-specific genes, offering insights into sex chromosome evolution.

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Area of Science:

  • Genomics
  • Comparative genomics
  • Mammalian genetics

Background:

  • The pig X and Y chromosomes are crucial for sex determination and reproduction.
  • Understanding their structure and gene content is vital for livestock breeding and evolutionary studies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To generate an improved assembly and gene annotation of the pig X chromosome.
  • To produce a first draft assembly of the pig Y chromosome.
  • To compare pig sex chromosomes with other mammals to understand evolutionary mechanisms.

Main Methods:

  • Sequencing of bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) and fosmid clones from Duroc pigs.
  • Incorporation of optical mapping and fiber fluorescence in situ hybridization (fiber-FISH) data.
  • Bioinformatic analysis for gene annotation and comparative genomics.

Main Results:

  • An improved assembly of the pig X chromosome with 1033 annotated genes, showing conserved gene order with primates and carnivores.
  • Identification of 38 pig-specific X-chromosomal genes, including 22 olfactory receptors.
  • A 15 Mb assembly of the pig Y chromosome revealing male-specific gene clusters, palindromes, and HSFY gene family, with many ancestral X-related genes present.

Conclusions:

  • The pig X chromosome exhibits conserved gene order, suggesting an ancestral arrangement.
  • The pig Y chromosome contains male-specific genes and structural features indicative of ongoing evolution.
  • Comparative analysis provides insights into the evolutionary pathways and mechanisms of mammalian sex chromosome divergence.