From: gary@horne.cc
Date: Fri Dec 06 2002 - 13:08:29 PST
Message-ID: <73020-22002125621829631@horne.cc> From: gary@horne.cc Subject: Re: pinhole Y-linked traits? Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2002 16:08:29 -0500
What I think is most interesting is that all the genes for female
traits (hormones, body parts, etc) AND all the genes for male traits
(hormones, body parts, etc) BOTH lie on the "X" chromosome. Thus, we
all have the genes for producing eggs and fertilizing them. The "y"
chromosome simply activates the male traits on the x chromosome.
Cool, huh?
Occasionally, the y malfunctions and doesn't activate the "male"
genes on the x. These "xy" women are usually fine...often strikingly
beautiful, with little evidence of their y chromosome. (I can't
remember for sure, but sometimes they are born with deformed
genitals,but it's usually fixed right away)
My source for all of this is a book entitled, "Women: An Intimate
Geography." Fascinating reading for both men and women.
g
---- Original Message ----
From: karenk@exploratorium.edu (Karen Kalumuck)
To: pinhole@exploratorium.edu
Subject: Re: pinhole Y-linked traits?
Date: Fri, 6 Dec 2002 11:24:56 -0800
>Hi Ben!
>
>The absolute best resource for finding out all about genetic linkages
>is
>the Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man database
>(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/omim/). This is THE "bible" for human
>geneticists, and I've used it extensively back in my days as a
>researcher,
>and now as an educator.
>
>Once you're at the home page, click on "Search the OMIM database",
>then
>type "Y-linked" into the search. It will pull up 50 entries (out of
>68
>found). Some are fairly esoteric, but there's other ones that your
>students could relate to, such as "hairy ears". Careful, though. Be
>sure
>to read the associated text; in many cases it's not really known for
>sure
>if it's a Y-linked gene, and many times is actually a polygenic
>trait.
>
>This is also a great way to see that all those traits that we've been
>telliing students are "dominant" or "recessive" are actually
>polygenic, and
>in many cases, never were thought to be dominant or recessive based
>on the
>available research. (How the misinformation got into the textbooks is
>a
>mystery I'd like to unravel). For example, if you search for "eye
>color",
>then click on #227240, "eye color 1", you'll find the following:
>
>"Eye color is likely to be a polygenic trait. The early view that
>blue is a
>simple recessive has been repeatedly shown to be wrong by observation
>of
>brown-eyed offspring of 2 blue-eyed parents. My (the
>author)monozygotic
>twin brother and I, brown-eyed, had blue-eyed parents and blue-eyed
>sibs."
>
>Enjoy!
>
>---Karen K
>
>
>
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