Female Mosaicism: The Stronger Sex?

--:--

The same thing that makes the patchwork colours on a tortoiseshell cat, also - according to some - is why human females live longer, see colour better, and even more often survive the coronavirus. It's all thanks to having two X chromosomes. Females compensate by switching one of them off, and the result is two distinct groups of cells in the body, each preferring one of the two X's. Welcome to the weird world of female mosaicism... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

14 Jul 2020 English United Kingdom Science

Other recent episodes

Will It Sequence? Synthetic DNA

In this episode of Naked Genetics: How much of your personality is down to your DNA; we also look at synthetic DNA, and why we'd want to make it; plus, the spiders that turn one species of insect against its own kind... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting…

8 Oct 24 min

Will It Sequence? 700-year-old DNA

In this episode of Naked Genetics: A mammoth discovery in ancient DNA structure; on the subject of ancient DNA, what can we sequence for a centuries old body? And, in quirks of evolution, the animal that drinks its own offspring's blood... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the…

22 Aug 21 min

Will It Sequence: How effective is handwashing?

In this episode of Naked Genetics: The risk factors between schizophrenia and substance use disorder have had a fresh genetic examination; I put Illumina to the test and ask, 'what difference does washing our hands really make?' And, the the extraordinary way in which dung beetles use the night sky…

15 Jul 19 min

Will It Sequence? What grows on your food?

In this episode of Naked Genetics: What the latest genetics research has to say about restless leg syndrome; I put Illumina to the test and ask, 'what really grows on our food?'; And, what makes a tardigrade so tough? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

6 Jun 25 min

Will It Sequence? Hunting drug resistant bugs

In this month's edition of Naked Genetics: Why a genetic bottleneck created decades ago means some whales are in deep water; how wastewater is helping genetic sequencer track down deadly diseases; And, surf's up! how one beach dwelling creature is shredding the gnar in order to find food... Like this…

2 May 23 min

All episodes