Genes, Vol. 11, Pages 1126: The Female-Specific W Chromosomes of Birds Have Conserved Gene Contents but Are Not Feminized

Genes, Vol. 11, Pages 1126: The Female-Specific W Chromosomes of Birds Have Conserved Gene Contents but Are Not Feminized Genes doi: 10.3390/genes11101126 Authors: Luohao Xu Qi Zhou Sex chromosomes are unique genomic regions with sex-specific or sex-biased inherent patterns and are expected to be more frequently subject to sex-specific selection. Substantial knowledge on the evolutionary patterns of sex-linked genes have been gained from the studies on the male heterogametic systems (XY male, XX female), but the understanding of the role of sex-specific selection in the evolution of female-heterogametic sex chromosomes (ZW female, ZZ male) is limited. Here we collect the W-linked genes of 27 birds, covering the three major avian clades: Neoaves (songbirds), Galloanserae (chicken), and Palaeognathae (ratites and tinamous). We find that the avian W chromosomes exhibit very conserved gene content despite their independent evolution of recombination suppression. The retained W-linked genes have higher dosage-sensitive and higher expression level than the lost genes, suggesting the role of purifying selection in their retention. Moreover, they are not enriched in ancestrally female-biased genes, and have not acquired new ovary-biased expression patterns after becoming W-linked. They are broadly expressed across female tissues, and the expression profile of the W-linked genes in females is not deviated from that of the homologous Z-linked genes. Together, our new analyses...
Source: Genes - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Tags: Article Source Type: research
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