Sry, Sox9 and mammalian sex determination.
Sry is the Y-chromosomal gene that acts as a trigger for male development in mammalian embryos. This gene encodes a high mobility group (HMG) box transcription factor that is known to bind to specific target sequences in DNA and to cause a bend in the chromatin. DNA bending appears to be part of the mechanism by which Sry influences transcription of genes downstream in a cascade of gene regulation leading to maleness, but the factors that cooperate with, and the direct targets of, Sry remain to be identified. One gene known to be downstream from Sry in this cascade in Sox9, which encodes a transcription factor related to Sry by the HMG box. Like Sry, mutations in Sox9 disrupt male development, but unlike Sry, the role of Sox9 is not limited to mammals. This review focuses on what is known about the two genes and their likely modes of action, and draws together recent data relating to how they might interconnect with the network of gene activity implicated in testis determination in mammals.
Koopman
P
P
Centre for Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia.
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006609:High Mobility Group Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D055758:SOX9 Transcription Factor; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D019849:Sex Determination Processes; D012733:Sex Differentiation / Q000235:genetics*; D051876:Sex-Determining Region Y Protein; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics*; D014998:Y Chromosome
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D006609:High Mobility Group Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D055758:SOX9 Transcription Factor; C527932:SOX9 protein, human; C497745:SRY protein, human; D051876:Sex-Determining Region Y Protein; D014157:Transcription Factors