Hushing the X chromosome
Monday, August 8, 2016 - 10:01
in Biology & Nature
Early in the development of female embryos, a crucial event occurs in all cells: An X chromosome is silenced. Whereas males have only one X chromosome, females have two—which means they can have twice as many proteins generated from their X chromosomes. Too much of certain proteins can be lethal, so nature has figured out a way to turn off one X chromosome.