December 02, 2010, 16:00 EST
Gene Could Play Role in 'Intersex' Conditions
Individuals can be biologically one sex, but display traits of the other, researchers explain
By Alan Mozes
HealthDay Reporter
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/646847.html (http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/646847.html)
THURSDAY, Dec. 2 (HealthDay News) -- An international team of scientists have pinpointed a gene mutation that they believe could be key to so-called "intersex" conditions, in which biologically male or female children develop or display some of the physical characteristics of the opposite sex.
"We have discovered a new molecular switch that seems to modulate the pathways between male and female development," study author Dr. Harry Ostrer, director of the Human Genetics Program at NYU Langone Medical Center, said in a news release.