3 ms·

I can't speak for whoever changed the title, but XX/XY is far more accurate and less clickbaity than Male/Female in this context. There is far more to human bi

I can't speak for whoever changed the title, but XX/XY is far more accurate and less clickbaity than Male/Female in this context. There is far more to human biological sex than the chromosomal distinction. Take an XY cell, but it in an otherwise female body, and it will, in many ways, express itself similar to that of an XX cell. This is the theory behind hormome replacement therapy (HRT). That is not to say that an XY cell in a female body would be identical to an XX cell in the same. For instance, an XY eye in a female body would likely be similar to a male eye with regards to color blindness; because we have traced colorblindness directly to a chromosonal difference. However, most sex differences (in humans) are not chromosonal. Instead they are triggered by a single gene (SRY), that just so happens to occur on the Y chromosone. That single gene codes for a protein that triggers almost all of the sex differentiation. Splice that single gene onto a X chromosome and you can get an XX human that appears male. Exactly what differences are directly chromosomal, and what are developmental is a largly open area of research, and exactly what this achievement hopes to further enable.

kelseyfrog 4y ago
Just curious, what are the potential effects of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock-out of SRY in adult humans?
anon291 4y ago
SRY triggers development of testis, but in fact, if you have a translocation of just SRY onto X, and thus are an XX male, you may have issues with reproduction, as the Y chromosome contains other supporting genes for the production of sperm. We can go on about male v female as a social construct, but biologically, males produce the smaller gamete, so if one has SRY and has an otherwise male phenotype, but isn't producing sperm, from a strictly biological perspective, it's not at all clear that the statement 'SRY is the determinant of maleness' is necessarily true. It certainly will make you develop testicles and male secondary sex characteristics. You are correct on the cell naming. Cells cannot be male or female. That is a characteristic of a complete person. They can be derived from a male or female, but what the scientists did here did not change that attribute of a cell.

kelseyfrog 4y ago

Just curious, what are the potential effects of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock-out of SRY in adult humans?

anon291 4y ago

SRY triggers development of testis, but in fact, if you have a translocation of just SRY onto X, and thus are an XX male, you may have issues with reproduction, as the Y chromosome contains other supporting genes for the production of sperm. We can go on about male v female as a social construct, but biologically, males produce the smaller gamete, so if one has SRY and has an otherwise male phenotype, but isn't producing sperm, from a strictly biological perspective, it's not at all clear that the statement 'SRY is the determinant of maleness' is necessarily true. It certainly will make you develop testicles and male secondary sex characteristics. You are correct on the cell naming. Cells cannot be male or female. That is a characteristic of a complete person. They can be derived from a male or female, but what the scientists did here did not change that attribute of a cell.