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1 June 1999 |
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Pages 127-131 |
PII: S0925-4773(99)00047-7
Copyright © 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.
All rights reserved.
Blanche Capela,
Kenneth H. Albrechtb,
Linda L. Washburnb
and Eva M. Eicherb
a Department of Cell Biology, Duke
University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
b The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, ME
04609, USA
Received 24 November 1998; revised 23 February 1999; accepted 23
February 1999. Available online 11 August 1999.
In mammals, the primary step in male sex determination is the initiation of testis development which depends on the expression of the Y-linked testis determining gene, Sry. The mechanisms by which Sry controls this process are unknown. Studies showed that cell migration from the adjacent mesonephros only occurs into XY gonads; however, it was not known whether this effect depended on Sry, another Y-linked gene, or the presence of one versus two X chromosomes. Here we provide genetic proof that Sry is the only Y-linked gene necessary for cell migration into the gonad. Cell migration from the mesonephros into the differentiating gonad is consistently associated with Sry's presence and with testis cord formation, suggesting that cell migration plays a critical role in the initiation of testis cord development. The induction of cell migration represents the earliest signaling pathway yet assigned to Sry.
Author Keywords: Cell migration; Gonadogenesis; Sex determination; Sry; Mesonephros
Index Terms: cell migration; mesonephros; gonad
development
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