Skip to content
Y chromosome

File:Human_male_karyotpe_high_resolution_-_Chromosome_Y.png · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

EntityQ202771· pop 59· linked from 930 articles

Y chromosome

Sign in to save

Also known as chrY, Y, GO:0000806, Y chromosomes

sex chromosome in the XY sex-determination system

AI overview

The Y chromosome is a sex chromosome that, along with the X chromosome, determines whether a person is male or female in the XY sex-determination system. It matters because it carries genetic instructions that direct the development of male characteristics during fetal development.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Research

18,453 papers

via PubMed

Wikidata facts

Subclass of
sex chromosome
Part of
genome
Has part
base pair
Show 4 more facts
Commons category
Y chromosomes
different from
human Y chromosome
has effect
Sex
Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~30 min read

Encyclopedic overview

The Y chromosome is one of two sex chromosomes in therian mammals and other organisms. Along with the X chromosome, it is part of the XY sex-determination system, in which the Y is used for sex-determining as the presence of the Y chromosome typically causes offspring produced in sexual reproduction to develop phenotypically male. In mammals, the Y chromosome contains the SRY gene, which usually triggers the differentiation of male gonads. The Y chromosome is typically only passed from male parents to male offspring.

Overview

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Y chromosome” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (3)