The genetics of gender and life span.
Several possible and potentially overlapping genetic mechanisms have been suggested to explain differences in life span between males and females. Two recent papers in BMC Evolutionary Biology on the effects of inbreeding provide additional insight into the genetic architecture underlying life span differences between genders in two different insects.
Tower
John
J
Molecular and Computational Biology Program, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-2910, USA. jtower@usc.edu
Arbeitman
Michelle
M
D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D008136:Longevity / Q000235:genetics*; D009035:Mothers; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012730:Sex Chromosomes / Q000235:genetics