Abstract
A good deal of sex differences in kidney disease is attributable to sex differences in the function of genes on the X chromosome. Males are uniquely vulnerable to mutations in their single copy of X-linked genes, whereas females are often mosaic, having a mixture of cells expressing different sets of X-linked genes. This cellular mosaicism created by X inactivation in females is most often advantageous, protecting carriers of X-linked mutations from the severe clinical manifestations seen in males. Even subtle differences in expression of many of the 1100 X-linked genes may contribute to sex differences in the clinical expression of renal diseases.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 2052-2059 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of the American Society of Nephrology |
Volume | 19 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 2008 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine