A study of gay men in the US has found fresh evidence that male
sexual orientation is influenced by genes. Scientists tested the DNA of
400 gay men and found that genes on at least two chromosomes affected
whether a man was gay or straight.
A region of the X chromosome
called Xq28 had some impact on men's sexual behaviour – though
scientists have no idea which of the many genes in the region are
involved, nor how many lie elsewhere in the genome.
Another
stretch of DNA on chromosome 8 also played a role in male sexual
orientation – though again the precise mechanism is unclear.
Researchers
have speculated in the past that genes linked to homosexuality in men
may have survived evolution because they happened to make women who
carried them more fertile. This may be the case for genes in the Xq28
region, as the X chromosome is passed down to men exclusively from their
mothers.
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