Late Replicating Domains Are Highly Recombining in Females but Have Low Male Recombination Rates: Implications for Isochore Evolution
2011

Sex-Specific Recombination and Replication Timing in Mammals

Sample size: 3549 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Pink Catherine J., Hurst Laurence D.

Primary Institution: Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom

Hypothesis

Are replication timing and recombination rates independent predictors of neutral rates of evolution?

Conclusion

The study finds that late replicating domains have high recombination rates in females but low rates in males, suggesting sex-specific complexities in recombination and replication timing.

Supporting Evidence

  • Sex-averaged recombination rates show little correlation with replication timing.
  • Female recombination rates are consistently higher in regions that replicate later during S-phase.
  • Controlling for female recombination rates reduces the strength of the relationship between intronic substitution rate and replication time.

Takeaway

In mammals, how DNA is copied and how often it mixes up can be different for boys and girls, which affects how quickly their genes change over time.

Methodology

The study analyzed intronic substitution rates, GC content, replication timing, and recombination rates using various statistical methods.

Potential Biases

Potential biases may arise from the methodologies used to estimate recombination rates.

Limitations

The study's findings are based on correlations and do not imply causation.

Participant Demographics

The study focused on mouse genomic data, specifically analyzing genes across different autosomes.

Statistical Information

P-Value

1.35×10−6

Statistical Significance

p<0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1371/journal.pone.0024480

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