The study for the mechanism of steroid hormone-dependent sex determination in amphibians

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Sex of an amphibian species Rana rugosa can be changed from female to male or in the opposite direction by treatment of sex steroid hormones. To induce the sex-reversal, androgens must bind its receptor. The androgen receptor (AR) gene is localized to the Z and W chromosome. The AR gene on the Z chromosome (Z-AR) is expressed normally, but W-AR is barely expressed, suggesting that this gene is probably involved in male sex determination in R. rugosa frogs. To prove this hypothesis, we produced transgenic frogs carrying an exogenous Z-AR. AR-transgenic female (ZW) frogs formed masculinized gonad or 'ovotestis'. Testosterone, supplied to the rearing water, completed the female-to-male sex-reversal in the AR-transgenic ZW frogs. This is the first report showing that the AR gene plays a very important role in male sex-determination in a vertebrate species.