The isolation of conserved DNA sequences related to the human sex-determining region Y gene from the lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus).
The sex-determining region gene (SRY) is a recently discovered candidate for the mammalian testis determining factor (TDF). The gene appears to form part of a family with several autosomal representatives. I have investigated the occurrence of SRY-related sequences in birds. The polymerase chain reaction was used to isolate six homologues of the conserved motif of the SRY gene from the lesser black-backed gull (Larus fuscus). Female unique copies of the motif are apparently absent. Sequence similarity and phylogenetic parsimony methods suggest that, irrespective of avian or mammalian origin, SRY-type sequences fall into two subfamilies. This is consistent with the presence of two archetypal genes in an ancestor common to both taxonomic classes.
Griffiths
R
R
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, U.K.
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001717:Birds / Q000235:genetics*; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D012732:Sex Determination Analysis; D014998:Y Chromosome
D004247:DNA