A whole-organism landscape of X-inactivation in humans

As females are mosaic for X-inactivation, direct determination of X-linked allelic expression in bulk tissues is typically unfeasible. Using females that are non-mosaic (completely skewed) for X-inactivation (nmXCI) has proven a powerful and natural genetic system for profiling X-inactivation in hum...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bjorn Gylemo, Maike Bensberg, Colm E Nestor
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: eLife Sciences Publications Ltd 2025-07-01
Series:eLife
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Online Access:https://elifesciences.org/articles/102701
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Summary:As females are mosaic for X-inactivation, direct determination of X-linked allelic expression in bulk tissues is typically unfeasible. Using females that are non-mosaic (completely skewed) for X-inactivation (nmXCI) has proven a powerful and natural genetic system for profiling X-inactivation in humans. By combining allele-resolution data for one previously reported and two newly identified nmXCI females, we directly determined X-inactivation status of 380 X-linked genes across 30 normal tissues, including 198 genes for which XCI status is directly determined for the first time. Our findings represent a substantial advance in our understanding of human X-inactivation and will serve as a reference for dissecting the genetic origin of sex bias in human traits. In addition, our study reveals nmXCI as a common feature of the human female population, with profound consequences for the penetrance and expressivity of X-linked traits in humans.
ISSN:2050-084X