INVERTED REPEAT STRUCTURE OF THE SRY LOCUS IN MICE

The testis-determining gene Sry is located on the short arm of the mouse Y chromosome in a region known to have undergone duplications and rearrangements in comparison with the equivalent portion of the human Y chromosome. Detailed analysis of the Sry genomic locus reveals a further difference in that the mouse Sry open reading frame lies within 2.8 kilobases of unique sequence at the center of a large inverted repeat. This repeat, which is found in both Mus musculus musculus and Mus musculus domesticus Y chromosomes, is not present at the human SRY locus. Recombination involving the repeat region may have led to an 11-kilobase deletion, precisely excising Sry in a line of XY female mice.