Random sex determination: When developmental noise tips the sex balance

Perrin, Nicolas

doi:10.1002/bies.201600093

Cited by 65 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 100 publications

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“…Altogether, these recent data confirmed that at least in these lineages TSD and GSD are not mutually exclusive systems but the 2 extreme endpoints of a continuum, underlying the coexistence of both genetic and environmental influences in the middle of this spectrum: 'many species have differentiated sex chromosomes, but also show a temperature override, where genes and environment interact to determine sex' [Holleley et al, 2015]. In fact just recently, a three-ended continuum that can be visualized as a triangle has been proposed [Perrin, 2016] in which genes, environment, and random factors (i.e., any stochastic fluctuation in the expression of key genes of the cascade) could interact to determine sex.…”

Section: Coexistence Of Genetic and Environmental Influencessupporting

confidence: 50%

The Reversible Sex of Gonochoristic Fish: Insights and Consequences

Baroiller¹,

D'Cotta²

2016

Sex Dev

139

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Fish sex reversal is a means to understand sex determination and differentiation, but it is also used to control sex in aquaculture. This review discusses sex reversal in gonochoristic fish, with the coexistence of genetic and environmental influences. The different periods of fish sensitivity to sex reversal treatments are presented with the mechanisms implicated. The old players of sex differentiation are revisited with transcriptome data and loss of function studies following hormone- or temperature-induced sex reversal. We also discuss whether cortisol is the universal mediator of sex reversal in fish due to its implication in ovarian meiosis and 11KT increase. The large plasticity in fish for sex reversal is also evident in the brain, with a reversibility existing even in adulthood. Studies on epigenetics are presented, since it links the environment, gene expression, and sex reversal, notably the association of DNA methylation in sex reversal. Manipulations with exogenous factors reverse the primary sex in many fish species under controlled conditions, but several questions arise on whether this can occur under wild conditions and what is the ecological significance. Cases of sex reversal in wild fish populations are shown and their fitness and future perspectives are discussed.

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Section: Coexistence Of Genetic and Environmental Influencessupporting

confidence: 50%

The Reversible Sex of Gonochoristic Fish: Insights and Consequences

Baroiller¹,

D'Cotta²

2016

Sex Dev

139

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“…Furthermore, the coexistence of multiple sex determining loci in a number of species (e.g., cichlids, housefly, zebrafish, seabass) suggests that multifactorial sex determination need not be unstable, provided the sex ratio is balanced (Liew et al, ; Meisel et al, ; Moore & Roberts, ; Roberts et al, ; Vandeputte, Dupont‐Nivet, Chavanne, & Chatain, ; Wilson et al, ). Because sex operates as a threshold trait in which female or male development is triggered when genetic and/or environmental cues surpass some level (Bulmer & Bull, ; Roff, ), the presence of multiple sex determining loci may not necessarily indicate that a system is undergoing a sex chromosome turnover (Beukeboom & Perrin, ; Perrin, ; Rodrigues et al, ).…”

Section: Future Directions and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

How to identify sex chromosomes and their turnover

et al. 2019

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Although sex is a fundamental component of eukaryotic reproduction, the genetic systems that control sex determination are highly variable. In many organisms the presence of sex chromosomes is associated with female or male development. Although certain groups possess stable and conserved sex chromosomes, others exhibit rapid sex chromosome evolution, including transitions between male and female heterogamety, and turnover in the chromosome pair recruited to determine sex. These turnover events have important consequences for multiple facets of evolution, as sex chromosomes are predicted to play a central role in adaptation, sexual dimorphism, and speciation. However, our understanding of the processes driving the formation and turnover of sex chromosome systems is limited, in part because we lack a complete understanding of interspecific variation in the mechanisms by which sex is determined. New bioinformatic methods are making it possible to identify and characterize sex chromosomes in a diverse array of non‐model species, rapidly filling in the numerous gaps in our knowledge of sex chromosome systems across the tree of life. In turn, this growing data set is facilitating and fueling efforts to address many of the unanswered questions in sex chromosome evolution. Here, we synthesize the available bioinformatic approaches to produce a guide for characterizing sex chromosome system and identity simultaneously across clades of organisms. Furthermore, we survey our current understanding of the processes driving sex chromosome turnover, and highlight important avenues for future research.

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“…However, the female versus hermaphrodite decision could also be modulated by environmental cues acting during embryogenesis and the L1 stage. These maternal and environmental effects could be modulations of what is essentially a random sex determination (RSD) system [85]. RSD occurs when fluctuations in the expression of genes at the top of the sex determining cascade or "developmental noise" are enough to canalise sexual fate down contrasting paths.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chromosome-wide evolution and sex determination in a nematode with three sexes

Tandonnet

Koutsovoulos

Adams

et al. 2018

Preprint

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The free-living nematode Auanema rhodensis is a rare example of a species with three sexes, in which males, females and hermaphrodites coexist. A. rhodensis males have only one X chromosome (XO), whereas females and hermaphrodites have two (XX). The A. rhodensis X chromosome is unusual: it does not recombine in hermaphrodites and is transmitted from father to son. The mechanism that controls the production of females versus hermaphrodites is unknown but is dependent on maternal and larval environmental factors. Here we report the genome sequence and genetic map of A. rhodensis, placing over 95% of the sequence in seven linkage groups. Comparison of the seven A. rhodensis chromosomes to chromosomal assemblies of Caenorhabditis elegans and three other rhabditine nematodes identified deeply conserved linkage groups we call Nigon units, some of which have been maintained in all species analysed. Others have undergone breakage and fusion, and the A. rhodensis karyotype is the product of a unique set of rearrangements involving three Nigon units. The A. rhodensis X chromosome is much smaller than the autosomes, is less gene dense and is 3 to 4 times more polymorphic, reflecting its unique transmission history. Differential expression analyses comparing females and hermaphrodites, identified several candidate genes, including orthologues of C. elegans gld-1, tra-1 and dmd-10/11, that are potentially involved in the femalehermaphrodite sexual decision.

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Random sex determination: When developmental noise tips the sex balance

Cited by 65 publications

References 100 publications

The Reversible Sex of Gonochoristic Fish: Insights and Consequences

The Reversible Sex of Gonochoristic Fish: Insights and Consequences

How to identify sex chromosomes and their turnover

Chromosome-wide evolution and sex determination in a nematode with three sexes

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