The sex-specific factor SOA controls dosage compensation in Anopheles mosquitoes.

ABSTRACT: The Anopheles mosquito is one of thousands of species in which sex differences play a central part in their biology, as only females need a blood meal to produce eggs. Sex differentiation is regulated by sex chromosomes, but their presence creates a dosage imbalance between males (XY) and females (XX). Dosage compensation (DC) can re-equilibrate the expression of sex chromosomal genes. However, because DC mechanisms have only been fully characterized in a few model organisms, key questions about its evolutionary diversity and functional necessity remain unresolved¹. Here we report the discovery of a previously uncharacterized gene (sex chromosome activation (SOA)) as a master regulator of DC in the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae. Sex-specific alternative splicing prevents fu

SUBMITTER: Kalita AI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10620080 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature