Sex chromosomes and sex-determining genes: insights from marsupials and monotremes.
Comparative studies of the genes involved in sex determination in the three extant classes of mammals, and other vertebrates, has allowed us to identify genes that are highly conserved in vertebrate sex determination and those that have recently evolved roles in one lineage. Analysis of the conservation and function of candidate sex determining genes in marsupials and monotremes has been crucial to our understanding of their function and positioning in a conserved mammalian sex-determining pathway, as well as their evolution. Here we review comparisons between genes in the sex-determining pathway in different vertebrates, and ask how these comparisons affect our views on the role of each gene in vertebrate sex determination.
Pask
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Department of Zoology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic. 3052, Australia.
Graves
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JA
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008322:Mammals / Q000235:genetics; D008394:Marsupialia / Q000235:genetics*; D009007:Monotremata / Q000235:genetics*; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D010802:Phylogeny; D019849:Sex Determination Processes; D051876:Sex-Determining Region Y Protein; D013737:Testis; D014157:Transcription Factors; D014714:Vertebrates / Q000235:genetics; D014960:X Chromosome; D014998:Y Chromosome
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D051876:Sex-Determining Region Y Protein; D014157:Transcription Factors