The Y chromosome harbours few protein-coding genes and their roles in early human development remain unclear. In their work, Tomohiko Akiyama and colleagues investigate the function of UTY in human pluripotent stem cells and revisit the assumption that Y-linked genes play only limited roles in core developmental processes. To learn more about their work, we spoke with the first and corresponding author, Tomohiko Akiyama, Assistant Professor from Yokohama City University, Japan, in the Department of Molecular Biology, Graduate School of Medicine and the Department of Medicine.
A Fri, study studied this question.