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Chromosomes and sport.

Yes or no?


  • Total voters
    6
As I think about it you're wrong on what genotype and phenotype are. Genotype isn't possibility range. You have genes for havnig red hair but you are NOT a ginger because you have DOMINANT genes for blond hair. Your genotype didn't have a list of possibilities, it specifically stated you would be blonde. WHAT IS A POSSIBILITY is the gene you pass down to your offspring. Phenotype is the physical representation of someone's genotype, the GENOTYPE is what the person ACTUALLY IS.

I'm not a ginger because the blonde gene was expressed. If an individual with Klinefelters syndrome has all the phenotypical traits of a female, because the extra Y chromosome was not expressed, then they're female in exactly the same way I'm a blonde because the blonde gene was expressed.
 
I'm not a ginger because the blonde gene was expressed. If an individual with Klinefelters syndrome has all the phenotypical traits of a female, because the extra Y chromosome was not expressed, then they're female in exactly the same way I'm a blonde because the blonde gene was expressed.

Again, refer to the quote, and Turtledude has provided 0 evidence as to the physical look of this man (including genitalia, from head to toe we know nothing of him) to back you up so as far as this statement goes, it's complete conjecture (not that it matters given the fact that Y chromosome = male).
 
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Depends on the details of the effects of the disorder.
 
Too many variables for me to give a blanket yes or no answer.
 
Genotype is the core genetic make-up of a person.

Phenotype is simply how they look.

When defining the sex BY FACT you must "report the source with the highest authority" which in this case is someone's genotype.

Take the best example possible, a transgender.

No, it's not quite that simple. An XY organism can develop essentially as a female. It's called androgen-insensitivity-syndrome in humans. Basically, an XY organism has all the genetic code necessary to develop as female. In fact, female is the default path of development in mammals, a path which is only interrupted by the introduction of androgens (male hormones) at the right time. In people affected by AIS their cells simply do not respond to the androgens. So they continue developing on as females. Externally their body is indistinguishable from an XX female. Generally, the disorder is never even recognized until they reach puberty and discover that they don't menstruate.
 
In the majority of sports, there's an expected range in which a given sex will perform a given physical task. Perhaps one solution is to test the competitor and see what range they fall into.

Of course, that is not without problems. There's cross-over and gray area between the binary sexes, so I would expect there'd be even more when dealing with intersex people. Then you run into the issue of gender identity, and that has to be dealt with both from the standpoint of the competitor's comfort, and the possible bias of the judge.

Then, there are some intersex disorders where there's really no problem at all. For example, a woman with AIS technically has XY chromosomes, but she has a hyper-feminine physical presentation, and nearly always a female gender identity. No one would even know her chromosomes were XY, and even her doctors probably didn't know until she failed to start menstruation. The muscular presentation of an AIS woman is very female, and doesn't warrant any further consideration than an XX woman would have.
 
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"As the resulting individual possesses at least one Y chromosome, they are typically considered genetically male, although the phenotype can be male, female or intersex."

Wikipedia take it with a grain of salt, it's the page on Klinefelter's syndrome (XXY).

If you have a Y chromosome you are genetically a man no matter what your phenotype is.

"Genetically male" is not always relevant. It's not relevant to the question of the OP. Having an XY genotype doesn't necessarily give you an advantage in a sport. Having a phenotype that typically accompanies an XY genotype (such as broader shoulders, higher bone density, etc) is what gives an individual an advantage. The question of whether an individual has advantage, then, is not a question of genotype but phenotype. What physical characteristics does the disorder give rise to.


As I think about it you're wrong on what genotype and phenotype are. Genotype isn't possibility range. You have genes for havnig red hair but you are NOT a ginger because you have DOMINANT genes for blond hair. Your genotype didn't have a list of possibilities, it specifically stated you would be blonde. WHAT IS A POSSIBILITY is the gene you pass down to your offspring. Phenotype is the physical representation of someone's genotype, the GENOTYPE is what the person ACTUALLY IS.

These are very well understood terms; no need to muddy the definitions. Genotype is an organism's sequence of base pairs in their DNA. Phenotype is an organism's physical characteristics. And there are other factors at work in determining an organism's phenotype than simply genotype. See: all of epigenetics.
 
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