Article
Article
Sex-linked inheritance
Article By:
Pyeritz, Reed E. Center for Medical Genetics, Allegheny Health, Education and Research Foundation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Last reviewed:January 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.617600
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- Sex-linked inheritance, published June 2014:Download PDF
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The inheritance of a trait that is determined by a gene located on one of the sex chromosomes. Sex-linked inheritance is the transmission to successive generations of traits (phenotypes) that are the result of alleles (alternative gene forms) at gene loci (fixed positions) on a sex chromosome (Fig. 1). These traits, including many diseases, have characteristic patterns of familial transmission; moreover, these patterns can be used to localize the genes for these traits to a specific chromosome. However, because the genomes of many organisms have been completely sequenced by advanced molecular techniques, reliance on the specific pattern of inheritance to map genes on sex chromosomes has waned. See also: Allele; Chromosome; Gene; Genetics; Sex chromosomes
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