Human Y Chromosome Declining, Potentially Threatening Future of Men
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The human Y chromosome is degenerating and may disappear in a few million years, threatening our extinction.
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Two rodent species have already lost their Y chromosome and survived by evolving a new sex gene.
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The spiny rat of Japan has evolved a tiny genetic duplication that boosts the activity of the SOX9 gene, allowing it to trigger male development without the SRY gene.
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Humans likely need to evolve a new sex determining gene before our Y chromosome disappears in order to avoid extinction.
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If different human populations evolve different new sex genes, it could lead to speciation and the emergence of separate human species unable to interbreed.