title: Male-driven evolution of DNA sequences.
abstract: It is commonly believed that the mutation rate is much higher in the human male germ line than in the female germ line because the number of germ-cell divisions per generation is much larger in males than in females. But direct estimation of mutation rates is difficult, relying mainly on sex-linked genetic diseases, so the ratio (alpha m) of male to female mutation rates is not clear. It has been noted that if alpha m is very large, then the rate of synonymous substitution in X-linked genes should be only 2/3 of that in autosomal genes, and comparison of human and rodent genes supported this prediction. As the number of X-linked genes used in the study was small and the X-linked and autosomal sequences were non-homologous, and given that the synonymous rate varies among genes, we sequenced the last intron (approximately 1 kb) of the Y-linked and X-linked zinc-finger-protein genes (ZFY and ZFX) in humans, orang-utans, baboons and squirrel monkeys. The ratio Y/X of the substitution rate in the Y-linked intron to that in the X-linked intron is approximately 2.3, which is close to that estimated from synonymous rates in the ZFY and ZFX genes and implies alpha m approximately 6. This estimate of alpha m supports the view that the evolution of DNA sequences in higher primates is male-driven. It is, however, much lower than the previous estimate and therefore raises a number of issues.
authors: Center for Demographic and Population Genetics, University of Texas, Houston 77225.
authors: L C
authors: LC
authors: Shimmin
authors: B H
authors: BH
authors: Chang
authors: W H
authors: WH
authors: Li
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D005075:Biological Evolution; D004247:DNA; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D051741:Kruppel-Like Transcription Factors; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010215:Papio; D011148:Pongo pygmaeus; D012453:Saimiri; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D012737:Sex Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors; D014960:X Chromosome; D014998:Y Chromosome; D016335:Zinc Fingers / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D051741:Kruppel-Like Transcription Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors; C054430:ZFY protein, human; C062076:zinc finger protein, X-linked; D004247:DNA