Sex differences in mutation rate in higher primates estimated from AMG intron sequences.

To study sex differences in mutation rate in primates, we sequenced the third introns of the AMGX and AMGY genes from humans, orangutans, and squirrel monkeys and estimated that the male-to-female ratio of mutation rate is alpha = 5.14 with the 95% confidence interval (2.42, 16.6). Combining this data set and the data sets from ZFX/ZFY and SMCX/SMCY introns, we obtained an estimate of alpha = 5.06 with the 95% confidence interval reduced to (3.24, 8.79). The alpha value is significantly higher in higher primates than in rodents.