On the subject of the X-Gene...

[jadehunter]

Well, I'm watching the FX presentation of X2 right now, in hopes that I'll get to see even more scenes from X3. If they're different from the ones shown during last night's presentation of X1, I'll post a detailed description later on. This post, though, is about the X-Gene and the theory of how the mutant gene is passed down to children as

Comments

[lucky44]

I'm not a geneticist, but I can point out at least a couple of ways the X-world could be right. We could play around with the theory and come up with several possibilities, each as likely as the next, as it's an AU. Maybe the gene mutates or develops somehow in the sperm carried in the testes, so that the male does not necessarily have the gene, but his progeny might. Maybe it results from genome imprinting

[jadehunter]

Maybe the gene mutates or develops somehow in the sperm carried in the testes, so that the male does not necessarily have the gene, but his progeny might.

Maybe in one person, but millions? All somehow having the same kind of trait that makes their sperm mutate to include the X-Gene? It would strike me as odd that no one would notice such a phenomenon, especially since mutations (of the non-X-Gene variety) are supposed to be random and unpredictable.

As for genomic imprinting, the thing is, genomic imprinting is only maintained in the somatic cell. While germ cells initially have genomic imprinting, that imprinting is eliminated during the fetal period. Which, then, again leaves us with the problem of the X-Gene then being sex-linked, which would make it impossible for the father to be the only one to, erm, blame, for lack of a better word.

[lucky44]

Well, the thing is that the mutation that causes mutants obviously isn't as random and unpredictable as normal mutations are, because there are several thousand, if not million, mutants on the X-planet. Maybe it's a virus that causes it, or an environmental factor, or radiation or something.

So far as the imprinting goes, I don't know that much about it, so I could be way off line with that. I'm just throwing stuff out there. :)