In female mammals, one of the X-chromosomes is transcriptionally silenced by heterochromatin formation to bring about equal expression of X-linked genes in XX females and XY males.
Keywords: X-chromosome; inactivation; XIST; methylation; replication
X‐Chromosome Inactivation
Stanley M Gartler, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
Michael A Goldman, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, USA
Published online: May 2005
DOI: 10.1038/npg.els.0004172
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| Further Reading | |
| Brockdorff N and Duthie SM (1998) X-chromosome inactivation and the Xist gene. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences 54: 104–112. | |
| Goto T and Monk M (1998) Regulation of X-chromosome inactivation in development in mice and humans. Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews 62: 362–378. | |
| Heard C, Clerc P and Avner P (1997) X-chromosome inactivation in mammals. Annual Review of Genetics 31: 571–610. | |
| Lyon MF (1961) Gene action in the X chromosome of the mouse. Nature 190: 372–373. | |
| Panning B and Jaenisch R (1998) RNA and the epigenetic regulation of X chromosome inactivation. Cell 93: 305–308. | |
| Spusta SC and Goldman MA (1999) XISTential wanderings: the role of XIST RNA in X-chromosome inactivation. Current Science 77: 530–537. | |
