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Ch. 5 - Sex Determination and Sex Chromosomes
Klug - Essentials of Genetics 10th Edition
Klug10th EditionEssentials of GeneticsISBN: 9780135588789Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 5, Problem 12

When cows have twin calves of unlike sex (fraternal twins), the female twin is usually sterile and has masculinized reproductive organs. This calf is referred to as a freemartin. In cows, twins may share a common placenta and thus fetal circulation. Predict why a freemartin develops.

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1
Understand that in cattle, when twins of unlike sex (a male and a female) share a common placenta, their blood circulations can mix through shared blood vessels.
Recognize that the male twin produces male hormones (androgens) such as testosterone during development, which can enter the female twin's bloodstream via the shared circulation.
Know that exposure to these male hormones during critical periods of fetal development can interfere with the normal development of the female reproductive system.
Realize that this hormonal influence causes the female twin to develop masculinized reproductive organs and results in sterility, a condition known as freemartinism.
Conclude that the freemartin develops because the female fetus is exposed to male hormones from her male twin through the shared placental blood supply, disrupting normal female reproductive development.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Freemartinism and Sexual Differentiation

Freemartinism occurs when a female calf develops masculinized traits due to exposure to male hormones during fetal development. This happens in mixed-sex twins sharing blood circulation, where male hormones influence the female twin's reproductive system, leading to sterility and masculinization.
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Placental Blood Sharing in Twins

In cattle, fraternal twins often share a common placenta, allowing their blood systems to connect. This shared circulation enables the transfer of hormones and cells between fetuses, which can cause hormonal influence from the male twin to affect the female twin's development.
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Role of Androgens in Reproductive Organ Development

Androgens, such as testosterone, are male sex hormones responsible for developing male reproductive organs. When a female fetus is exposed to these hormones in utero, her reproductive organs can become masculinized, disrupting normal female development and causing sterility.
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