Christians Lab
Sex differences in placental gene expression
Sexual dimorphism in placental gene expression may be due
to sex chromosomes (i.e., XX in female mammals, XY in
males) and/ or the effects of sex steroids produced by the
fetus. This distinction is relevant to the ability of the
sexes to achieve different adaptive growth strategies and
responses to insults. We will use next-generation
sequencing approaches and experimental manipulations to
assess the relative contributions of chromosomal and
gonadal sex to differences in placental gene expression,
and to differences in the placental response to adversity.
