Quran and
Determination of Sex
The Noble Qur'an which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SallAllaahu
alayHi wa AaliHii Wasallam) about 1400 years ago mentions how the sex of a human being
is determined. The following two verses or Ayat of the Qur'an are very clear on
this matter. (A. Yusuf Ali translation)
"And of him He made Two sexes, male and
female." Surah Qiyamat (the Resurrection), 75:
39
In the above Ayah, “of him He made two sexes, male and
female" means that ‘of the human male (he), He (Allah) Created both
the sexes male and female’. Hence human male is responsible
for the birth of a male child or a female child. The human female is not
responsible for the sex determination of the child. However, in many
Muslim countries the woman is blamed for the birth of a female child as in
these countries they welcome the arrival of a male child. "That He did
create in pairs,-male and female, From a seed when lodged (in its place);
Surah Najm (the Star) 53:45-46
To understand Sex determination we need to understand the
Chromosomes, particularly the X and Y chromosomes.
The accepted chromosome number for humans in 1935 was
forty-eight. The year 1956 is considered to mark the beginning of modern human
Cytogenetics. Until this time the number of chromosomes in the normal human
cell was considered to be 48. Due to improvements in techniques it was
discovered that the correct number is 46 (Tjio and Levan, 1956)
Reference: Tjio JH, Levan A
(1956) The chromosome number of man. Am J Obstet Gynecol 130:723-724
What is a Chromosome?
A chromosome is composed of a very long molecule of DNA and
associated proteins that carry hereditary information. The centromere, which is
at the center of the chromosome, is a specialized structure that appears during
cell division and ensures the correct distribution of duplicated chromosomes to
daughter cells. Telomeres are the structures that seal the end of a chromosome.
Telomeres play a critical role in chromosome replication and maintenance by
counteracting the tendency of the chromosome to otherwise shorten with each
round of replication.
Chromosomes are composed of protein and DNA, and they are
distinct dense bodies found in the nucleus of cells. Genetic information is
contained in the DNA of chromosomes in the form of linear sequences of bases
(A, T, C, G). The DNA in an individual chromosome is one, long molecule, which
is highly coiled and condensed. The total number of bases in all the
chromosomes of a human cell is approximately six billion and individual
chromosomes range from 50 to 250 million bases. The DNA sequence for a single trait
is called a gene. Each chromosome contains a few thousand genes, which range in
size from a few thousand bases up to 2 million bases.
During most of the cell cycle, interphase, the chromosomes
are somewhat less condensed and are not visible as individual objects under the
light microscope. However during cell division or mitosis, the chromosomes
become highly condensed and are then visible as dark distinct bodies within the
nuclei of cells. The chromosomes are most easily seen and identified at the metaphase
stage of cell division.
Sex Chromosomes X and Y
Somatic cell is any cell other
than a sperm or egg cell. Somatic cells in humans and most other animals are diploid. Diploid
cells are cells containing two sets of chromosomes. Each somatic cell in
humans contains 46 chromosomes which can be distinguished from one
another by their appearance under a microscope. Chromosomes differ in size,
position of the centromere, and staining pattern. A pair of chromosomes
that have the same size, centromere position and staining pattern are called Homologous
chromosomes (homologues). The chromosomes of a homologous pair carry genes
controlling the same inherited traits. Each locus (the position of a gene along
the length of a chromosome) is in the same position on homologues.
One exception to homologous chromosomes for human somatic
cells is the two distinct sex chromosomes which are
important in sex determination. All other chromosomes are referred to as autosomes.
Sex chromosomes in humans are the X and Y chromosomes.
The special type of cell division that produces haploid
cells is called meiosis and
occurs only in the gonads (ovaries of the female and testes of the male).
Meiosis in humans produces sperm and egg cells which contain 23 chromosomes.
When fertilization occurs, the zygote contains 46 chromosomes and is diploid.
The process of meiosis and fertilization are unique to sexual reproduction and
all sexually reproducing organisms follow a basic pattern of alternation
between diploid and haploid conditions. Haploid cell is a cell
that contains a single chromosome set.
The number of chromosomes in human cells is 46 with 22
autosomal pairs (a total of 44) (one of each type contributed by the mother and
one of each type from the father) and 2 sex chromosomes - 2 X chromosomes for
females (one from father and one from mother) or an X and a Y chromosome for
males (the X from the mother and the Y from the father). Sex chromosomes
determine the sex of an organism and some other sex-linked characteristics.
In the process of reproduction, special cells are produced
in males and females. Males produce sperm cells and females produce
egg cells, or ova. The chromosomal makeup of these cells is interesting. Each
sex cell from each parent contains only one member from each pair of
chromosomes. Therefore, in ova or egg cells there are 22 autosomes plus an X
chromosome. There are two types of sperm cells, each type carrying 22 autosomes
plus a gender-determining chromosome, i.e., X or Y.
The banding of chromosomes by using dyes was discovered in
the late 1960's and before that cytogeneticists depended on chromosome length
and position of a constriction to identify the individual chromosomes. The band
width and the order of bands is characteristic of a particular chromosome - a
trained cytogeneticist can identify each chromosome (1,2,3...22, X and Y) by
observing its banding pattern under the microscope.
Sex Determination
Sperm and egg cells are called gametes and
are distinct from somatic cells with respect to their chromosome number.
Each human gamete contains a single set of 22 autosomes and a sex chromosome
(either an X or a Y). Gametes in humans and other organisms are haploid.
Haploid number: The number of
chromosomes in a haploid cell (designated N). The haploid number of humans is
23. Sexual intercourse allows a haploid sperm cell from the father to reach and
fuse with an egg cell from the mother in a process called fertilization. Fertilization is
the fusion of a sperm cell and an egg cell to form a zygote.
Zygote is a fertilized egg cell and
it contains the two haploid sets of chromosomes from the gametes and is
diploid.
Half of the genes carried on the chromosomes are contributed
by the mother (set of chromosomes from the egg cell) and half by the father
(set of chromosomes from the sperm cell).
During development from a zygote to a sexually mature adult,
the zygote's genetic information is passed with precision to all somatic cells
by the process of mitosis. Sex organs, which form during development, then
produce new gametes which can initiate a new cycle.
A human's sex is predetermined in the sperm gamete
(spermatozoa). The egg gamete mother cell is said to be homogametic,
because all its cell possess the XX sex chromosomes. Sperm gametes are deemed
heterogametic because around half of them contain the X chromosome and others
possess the Y chromosome to compliment the first X chromosome. In light of
this, there are two possibilities that can occur during fertilization between
male and female gametes, XX and XY. Since sperm are the variable factor
(i.e. which sperm fertilizes the egg) they are responsible for determining sex.
Chromosomes X and Y
Chromosomes X and Y do not truly make up a homologous pair.
They act similarly in their roles, but they are not homologous (the same). The
X chromosome in humans is much longer than the Y chromosome and also contains
many more genes. These genes are said to be sex linked, due to the fact they
are present in one of the sex chromosomes. During fertilization, when the
opposing homologous chromosomes come together, the smaller Y chromosome offers
no dominance against the 'extra' X-chromosomes as indicated below.
Sex Linked Characteristics
These sex linked genes on the X chromosome display a number
of characteristics. The following are some examples of phenotypes as a result
of these genes:
Red-Green colour blindness and Hemophilia - (a
condition which prevents the clotting of the blood)
Humans usually have 46 chromosomes per diploid cell
consisting of 22 sets of autosomes and a set of sex
chromosomes - either XX or XY. In the
usual course of events, individuals with the karyotype 46, XX are female
and individuals with 46, XY, are male.
The question arises as to how the sex of an individual is determined. Is sex determined by the number of X-chromosomes - with one X you are male or with 2 X's you are female? Or is sex determined by the presence or absence of the Y chromosome - the presence of a Y makes for a male or the absence of a Y produces a female?
The answer was provided by individuals resulting from non-disjunction of the sex chromosomes. Some individuals have 45 chromosomes and have only one X chromosome; other individuals have 47 chromosomes and have two X-chromosomes and a Y. The table below indicates the sex of these individuals. _____________________________________________________
Chromosome Constitution
Name of
Syndrome
Sex of Individual Frequency in Population
46,
XX
Normal
Female
0.511 *
46, XY
Normal
Male
0.489*
45,
XO
Turner's Syndrome
Female
1 in 5,000
47,
XXY
Klinefelter's
Syndrome
Male
1
in 700
_____________________________________________________
* Female (46, XX) and Male (46, XY) frequencies taken from
US Census projection of July 1, 1966 with no correction for chromosome
constitution.
It is clear that the presence of a Y chromosome
is necessary for male sexual characteristics to develop.
Reference: http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_51_100/quran_and_determination_of_sex.htm
With thanks from
Mr. Ibrahim B. Syed, Ph. D. President,
Islamic Research
Foundation International,
God bless the
entire humanity
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