hmmm . . . .
A quick Google search and I found this:
http://www.csiro.au/en/Organisation...-newsletter/2-sex-determination-chickens.aspx
The article is quoted below:
Researchers successfully influence sex ratios in chickens
Researchers from CSIRO Livestock Industries' Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL) and the University of Melbourne's Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) – both based in Victoria – have solved the long-standing mystery of what determines sex development in chickens.
- 22 January 2010 | Updated 14 October 2011
The collaborative effort is a scientific breakthrough which could have significant benefits for animal welfare.
The MCRI researchers first discovered the DMRT1 gene in 1999 and proposed its sex-determining role in birds.
CSIRO, in partnership with MCRI, showed that manipulating chicken embryos to silence DMRT1 caused testis to become ovaries – bringing about male to female sex reversal.
According to CSIRO Research Group Leader Dr Tim Doran, the aim of this gene technology work was to determine if knockdown of DMRT1 in ovo (in the chicken egg), using the CSIRO-developed RNA interference (RNAi) technology, could in fact induce the selective development of a female gonad phenotype.
"This research has major applications for the poultry industry, in particular the egg industry which does not require male chickens – presenting a welfare challenge."
Dr Doran, CSIRO Research Group Leader
"This research has demonstrated that there is potential to generate only female chickens through knocking down or silencing the DMRT1 gene," he said.
The scientists are now attempting to hatch embryos in which the level of DMRT1 gene expression has been knocked down. If successful, the discovery could allow researchers to influence sex ratios in poultry.
"This research has major applications for the poultry industry, in particular the egg industry which does not require male chickens – presenting a welfare challenge," Dr Doran said.
"However, the general public will also need to be supportive if we are successful. While gene technology is a tool that offers potentially enormous benefits, it is still relatively new technology and it is important that its use is carefully regulated by government to protect human health and the environment."
The new discovery could also bring the scientific community one step closer to uncovering the genetic cause of sex development disorders in humans.
As 80 per cent of genes are common in birds and humans, the technology developed to analyse the role of the DMRT1 gene in chicken embryos can be used to explore the function of many different human disease genes.
The findings are published in the prestigious journal
Nature, with the paper entitled
The avian Z-linked gene DMRT1 is required for male sex determination in the chicken [external link].
