Male sex determination: insights into molecular mechanisms.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: McClelland K
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3735148 | biostudies-other | 2012 Jan
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other
Similar Datasets
Project description:There is a huge demand to identify the sex of unhatched fertilized eggs for laying industry and to understand the differences between male and female eggs as early as possible. Then the molecular mechanisms of sex determination and sex allocation in chicken were revealed. Therefore, TMT proteomic was applied to characterize the variation of molecular matrix between unhatched male and female egg yolks. A total of 411 proteins were identified and 35 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs), including 375332005, 015809562, 763550308 (upregulated, UPs) and 1337178851, 89000557, 89000581 (downregulated, DPs), etc. were confirmed between them. Gene ontology analyses showed that DEPs were mainly involved in response to stimulus, distributed in the extracellular region and participated in binding; KEGG analyses showed that few DPs were participated in cell growth and death, transport and catabolism, signaling molecules, interaction and were enriched in ubiquitin mediated proteolysis, endocytosis, ferroptosis, etc. metabolic pathways. Moreover, most of the DEPs and related metabolic pathways were associated with sex hormones. More importantly, this study supports maternal sex-allocation theory and extends our understanding of the molecular mechanism of sex determination and differentiation in avian. Which also provides a powerful evidence for ovo sexing of unhatched fertilized domestic chicken eggs by nondestructive approach and will be of great significance to eggs processing and production.
| S-EPMC9198474 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Identifying the mechanism for sex determination in amphibians is challenging. Very little is known about sex determination mechanisms of Rana dybowskii, a species of importance to evolutionary and conservation biology. We screened for sex-linked molecular markers in R. dybowskii in China using target region amplification polymorphism with 2 fixed primers against the sequences of Dmrt1. We found 2 male-linked molecular markers in R. dybowskii, which were 222 bp and 261 bp long. The detection rates of 222 bp marker in males form Xinglong, Huadian, and Dandong were 93.79%, 69.64%, and 13.64%, respectively, while the rate in females from Huadian was 27.50%. Besides, the detection rates of 261 bp marker in the above 3 regions were only observed in males at the rate of 93.79%, 87.50%, and 32.73%, respectively. The inheritance patterns of sex-linked molecular markers showed that the 2 sex-linked molecular markers were heterozygous. Compared to the XY-male parent, progeny from XX-pseudo-male parent possessed lower sex reversal ratio at the same rearing temperature, and the proportion of female froglets from an XX-pseudo-male parent was more than 95% at low rearing temperature (15°C). Our findings suggest that R. dybowskii displays male heterogamety, and the 2 sex-linked molecular markers may have a guiding significance for the protection and utilization of R. dybowskii.
| S-EPMC9290989 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Establishment of germline sexual identity is critical for production of male and female germline stem cells, as well as sperm versus eggs. Here we identify PHD Finger Protein 7 (PHF7) as an important factor for male germline sexual identity in Drosophila. PHF7 exhibits male-specific expression in early germ cells, germline stem cells, and spermatogonia. It is important for germline stem cell maintenance and gametogenesis in males, whereas ectopic expression in female germ cells ablates the germline. Strikingly, expression of PHF7 promotes spermatogenesis in XX germ cells when they are present in a male soma. PHF7 homologs are also specifically expressed in the mammalian testis, and human PHF7 rescues Drosophila Phf7 mutants. PHF7 associates with chromatin, and both the human and fly proteins bind histone H3 N-terminal tails with a preference for dimethyl lysine 4 (H3K4me2). We propose that PHF7 acts as a conserved epigenetic "reader" that activates the male germline sexual program.
| S-EPMC3635078 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To gain further insight into chromatin-mediated regulation of mammalian sex determination, we analyzed the role of the CHARGE syndrome-associated proteins FAM172A and CHD7. This study is based on our prior discoveries that a subset of corresponding mutant mice display complete male-to-female sex reversal, and that both of these proteins regulate co-transcriptional alternative splicing in neural crest cells. Here, we report that FAM172A and CHD7 are present in the developing gonads when sex determination normally occurs in mice. The interactome of FAM172A in pre-Sertoli cells again suggests a role at the chromatin-spliceosome interface, like in neural crest cells. Accordingly, analysis of Fam172a-mutant pre-Sertoli cells revealed transcriptional and splicing dysregulation of hundreds of genes. Many of these genes are similarly affected in Chd7-mutant pre-Sertoli cells, including several known key regulators of sex determination and subsequent formation of testis cords. Among them, we notably identified Sry as a direct transcriptional target and WNT pathway-associated Lef1 and Tcf7l2 as direct splicing targets. The identified molecular defects are also associated with the abnormal morphology of seminiferous tubules in mutant postnatal testes. Altogether, our results thus identify FAM172A and CHD7 as new players in the regulation of male sex determination and differentiation in mice, and further highlight the importance of chromatin-mediated regulatory mechanisms in these processes.
| S-EPMC9304217 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Conditions experienced during embryonic development can have lasting effects, even carrying across generations. Most evidence for transgenerational effects comes from studies of female mammals, with much less known about egg-laying organisms or paternally-mediated effects. Here we show that offspring sex can be affected by the incubation temperature its father experiences years earlier. We incubated eggs of an Australian lizard with temperature-dependent sex determination under three thermal regimes; some eggs were given an aromatase inhibitor to produce sons at temperatures that usually produce only daughters. Offspring were raised to maturity and freely interbred within field enclosures. After incubating eggs of the subsequent generation and assigning parentage, we found that the developmental temperature experienced by a male significantly influences the sex of his future progeny. This transgenerational effect on sex ratio may reflect an epigenetic influence on paternally-inherited DNA. Clearly, sex determination in reptiles is far more complex than is currently envisaged.
| S-EPMC3776964 | biostudies-other
Project description:Sex determination in the mosquito Aedes aegypti is governed by a dominant male-determining factor (M factor) located within a Y chromosome-like region called the M locus. Here, we show that an M-locus gene, Nix, functions as an M factor in A. aegypti. Nix exhibits persistent M linkage and early embryonic expression, two characteristics required of an M factor. Nix knockout with clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-Cas9 resulted in largely feminized genetic males and the production of female isoforms of two key regulators of sexual differentiation: doublesex and fruitless. Ectopic expression of Nix resulted in genetic females with nearly complete male genitalia. Thus, Nix is both required and sufficient to initiate male development. This study provides a foundation for mosquito control strategies that convert female mosquitoes into harmless males.
| S-EPMC5026532 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Recent epidemiological studies analysing sex-disaggregated patient data of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) across the world revealed a distinct sex bias in the disease morbidity as well as the mortality - both being higher for the men. Similar antecedents have been known for the previous viral infections, including from coronaviruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and middle-east respiratory syndrome (MERS). A sound understanding of molecular mechanisms leading to the biological sex bias in the survival outcomes of the patients in relation to COVID-19 will act as an essential requisite for developing a sex-differentiated approach for therapeutic management of this disease. Recent studies which have explored molecular mechanism(s) behind sex-based differences in COVID-19 pathogenesis are scarce; however, existing evidence, for other respiratory viral infections, viz. SARS, MERS and influenza, provides important clues in this regard. In attempt to consolidate the available knowledge on this issue, we conducted a systematic review of the existing empirical knowledge and recent experimental studies following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The qualitative analysis of the collected data unravelled multiple molecular mechanisms, such as evolutionary and genetic/epigenetic factors, sex-linkage of viral host cell entry receptor and immune response genes, sex hormone and gut microbiome-mediated immune-modulation, as the possible key reasons for the sex-based differences in patient outcomes in COVID-19.
| S-EPMC8353216 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Sex chromosomes are generally derived from a pair of classical type-A chromosomes, and relatively few alternative models have been proposed up to now.1,2 B chromosomes (Bs) are supernumerary and dispensable chromosomes with non-Mendelian inheritance found in many plant and animal species3,4 that have often been considered as selfish genetic elements that behave as genome parasites.5,6 The observation that in some species Bs can be either restricted or predominant in one sex7-14 raised the interesting hypothesis that Bs could play a role in sex determination.15 The characterization of putative B master sex-determining (MSD) genes, however, has not yet been provided to support this hypothesis. Here, in Astyanax mexicanus cavefish originating from Pachón cave, we show that Bs are strongly male predominant. Based on a high-quality genome assembly of a B-carrying male, we characterized the Pachón cavefish B sequence and found that it contains two duplicated loci of the putative MSD gene growth differentiation factor 6b (gdf6b). Supporting its role as an MSD gene, we found that the Pachón cavefish gdf6b gene is expressed specifically in differentiating male gonads, and that its knockout induces male-to-female sex reversal in B-carrying males. This demonstrates that gdf6b is necessary for triggering male sex determination in Pachón cavefish. Altogether these results bring multiple and independent lines of evidence supporting the conclusion that the Pachón cavefish B is a "B-sex" chromosome that contains duplicated copies of the gdf6b gene, which can promote male sex determination in this species.
| S-EPMC8578452 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Sex determination (SD) is a crucial developmental process, but its molecular underpinnings are very diverse, both between and within species. SD mechanisms have traditionally been categorized as either genetic (GSD) or environmental (ESD), depending on the type of cue that triggers sexual differentiation. However, mixed systems, with both genetic and environmental components, are more prevalent than previously thought. Here, we show theoretically that environmental effects on expression levels of genes within SD regulatory mechanisms can easily trigger within-species evolutionary divergence of SD mechanisms. This may lead to the stable coexistence of multiple SD mechanisms and to spatial variation in the occurrence of different SD mechanisms along environmental gradients. We applied the model to the SD system of the housefly, a global species with world-wide latitudinal clines in the frequencies of different SD systems, and found that it correctly predicted these clines if specific genes in the housefly SD system were assumed to have temperature-dependent expression levels. We conclude that environmental sensitivity of gene regulatory networks may play an important role in diversification of SD mechanisms.
| S-EPMC10210438 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Sex determination in the flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella.
| PRJEB45597 | ENA