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Evidence for evolutionary conservation of sex-determining genes
C S Raymond1, C E Shamu, M M Shen
1Institute of Human Genetics, Department of Biochemistry, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis 55455, USA.
Nature
|March 7, 1998
Summary
A conserved gene family, the DM domain, regulates sexual development across diverse animal phyla. This discovery suggests a shared evolutionary origin for sex determination mechanisms in metazoans.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Most metazoans exhibit two sexes, yet sex-determining mechanisms were thought to be highly divergent across phyla.
- Previous molecular analyses suggested significant differences in how various animal groups establish sexual characteristics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolutionary conservation of sex-determining genes.
- To identify common molecular mechanisms underlying sexual regulation in different animal phyla.
Main Methods:
- Isolation and characterization of the male sexual regulatory gene mab-3 from Caenorhabditis elegans.
- Comparative analysis of mab-3 with Drosophila melanogaster's doublesex (dsx) gene.
- Identification and expression analysis of a human homolog, DMT1, containing the DM domain.
Main Results:
- The C. elegans mab-3 gene is structurally and functionally related to the D. melanogaster dsx gene.
- Both genes encode proteins with a conserved DNA-binding motif, termed the 'DM domain'.
- DM domain proteins regulate sex-specific neuroblast differentiation and yolk protein gene transcription in both species, with evidence of cross-species functional conservation.
Conclusions:
- A shared evolutionary origin for key aspects of sexual regulation is suggested by the conserved DM domain.
- The identification of a human DM domain gene (DMT1), expressed in testes and located near a region associated with XY sex reversal, implies a role in mammalian sexual development.
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