Sex Verification Research Articles

Gene expression profiles of Japanese precious coral Corallium japonicum during gametogenesis.

Corallium japonicum, a prized resource in Japan, plays a vital role in traditional arts and fishing industries. Because of diminished stock due to overexploitation, ongoing efforts are focused on restoration through transplantation. This study aimed to enhance our understanding of the reproductive biology of these valuable corals and find more efficient methods for sex determination, which may significantly contribute to conservation initiatives. We used 12 three-month aquarium reared C. japonicum colony fragments, conducted histological analysis for maturity and sex verification, and performed transcriptome analysis via de novo assembly and mapping using the C. rubrum transcriptome to explore gene expression differences between female and male C.japonicum. Our histological observations enabled sex identification in 33% of incompletely mature samples. However, the sex of the remaining 67% of samples, classified as immature, could not be identified. RNA-seq yielded approximately 21-31 million short reads from 12 samples. De novo assembly yielded 404,439 highly expressed transcripts. Among them, 855 showed significant differential expression, with 786 differentially expressed transcripts between females and males. Heatmap analysis highlighted 283 female-specific and 525 male-specific upregulated transcripts. Transcriptome assembly mapped to C. rubrum yielded 28,092 contigs, leading to the identification of 190 highly differentially expressed genes, with 113 upregulated exclusively in females and 70 upregulated exclusively in males. Blastp analysis provided putative protein annotations for 83 female and 72 male transcripts. Annotation analysis revealed that female biological processes were related to oocyte proliferation and reproduction, whereas those in males were associated with cell adhesion. Transcriptome analysis revealed sex-specific gene upregulation in incompletely mature C. japonicum and shared transcripts with C. rubrum, providing insight into its gene expression patterns. This study highlights the importance of using both de novo and reference-based assembly methods. Functional enrichment analysis showed that females exhibited enrichment in cell proliferation and reproduction pathways, while males exhibited enrichment in cell adhesion pathways. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the gene expressions of each sex during the spawning season. Our findings offer valuable insights into the physiological ecology of incompletely mature red Japanese precious corals and suggest a method for identifying sex using various genes expressed in female and male individuals. In the future, techniques such as transplantation, artificial fertilization, and larval rearing may involve sex determination methods based on differences in gene expression to help conserve precious coral resources and ecosystems.

Bill Shape Variation in African Penguin (Spheniscus demersus) Held Captive in Two Zoos

Penguins, like most birds, are considered monomorphic species. Cloacal endoscopy, laparoscopy, or molecular sex verification are used to determine sex in such animals. Our aim in this study was to investigate whether sex recognition can be performed in penguins by a non-invasive method using the shape of the bill. For this purpose, sex and population differences in penguins were investigated by geometric morphometric methods using photos of the bill in the dorsal and lateral views. Fifty-four African penguins (Spheniscus demersus) were taken for the study. Principal component analysis was applied to reveal the shape variations of the bill. Principal components were extracted for each bill projection. PC1 explained 37.06% of the total variation in the dorsal view, while PC1 for the lateral view explained 31.4% of the total variation. Canonical variance analysis was performed to reveal the differences between groups. The lateral view was more effective in revealing the differences between the groups and between the sexes. For the dorsal view, Procrustes distances values between any group were not statistically significant. The maxillary rostrum in female penguins was higher, while, in males, the mandibular rostrum was higher. The females’ bills were narrower than in males. Centroid size in males was on average larger than in females. Significant differences in bill shape between populations were also found. Using geometric morphometric methods, sex analysis can be conducted with less equipment and less stress on the birds. However, the environmental factors that cause bill variation in birds should be examined in more detail. Better knowledge of the effects of environmental factors on bill variation is important for geometric morphometric methods to give more accurate results in sex and population analyses.

Verification of sex- and age-specific reference intervals for 13 serum steroids determined by mass spectrometry: evaluation of an indirect statistical approach.

Conventionally, reference intervals are established by direct methods, which require a well-characterized, obviously healthy study population. This elaborate approach is time consuming, costly and has rarely been applied to steroid hormones measured by mass spectrometry. In this feasibility study, we investigate whether indirect methods based on routine laboratory results can be used to verify reference intervals from external sources. A total of 11,259 serum samples were used to quantify 13 steroid hormones by mass spectrometry. For indirect estimation of reference intervals, we applied a "modified Hoffmann approach", and verified the results with a more sophisticated statistical method (refineR). We compared our results with those of four recent studies using direct approaches. We evaluated a total of 81 sex- and age-specific reference intervals, for which at least 120 measurements were available. The overall agreement between indirectly and directly determined reference intervals was surprisingly good as nearly every fourth reference limit could be confirmed by narrow tolerance limits. Furthermore, lower reference limits could be provided for some low concentrated hormones by the indirect method. In cases of substantial deviations, our results matched the underlying data better than reference intervals from external studies. Our study shows for the first time that indirect methods are a valuable tool to verify existing reference intervals for steroid hormones. A simple "modified Hoffmann approach" based on the general assumption of a normal or lognormal distribution model is sufficient for screening purposes, while the refineR algorithm may be used for a more detailed analysis.

Gender, Embodiment, and Self-Regulation: Surveillance in Canadian Intercollegiate Women’s Distance Running

This article draws on data collected through semi-structured interviews with intercollegiate cross country and track athletes to investigate how female distance runners experience their sport concerning gender and embodiment. The runners identified gender as affecting their sport by way of short­er distances for women’s races, heightened involvement of coaches in corporeal matters such as diet and weight, as well as sex verification policies. Distance running was also specifically identified as a sport that intensifies societal pressures for women to be thin. Drawing on Foucault’s theory of disciplinary power, this paper explores how dominant discourses on gender and the body are reproduced within distance running through a combination of structural and cultural practices. However, the paper also highlights resistance to cultural ideals among female runners, calling for a more dynamic understand­ing of disciplinary power that accounts for individual agency.

Gender determination in sport

Many sports distinguish between female and male disciplines. The key reason for such division stems from the physiological characteristics that might give men the advantage over women in specific sports disciplines. Various sex-verification procedures were introduced to ensure fair play, but these were invasive procedures resulting in social stigmatization, gender discrimination and psychological trauma for female athletes. Sex verification was also proven to be unsuitable in the case of deviations from the standard binary concept of gender (e.g., in the case of mutations). For those reasons, critical legal developments have been achieved in this complex field of law, medicine, and sports in recent years.

Sex and gender in sport categorization: aiming for terminological clarity

ABSTRACT It is difficult to develop good arguments when the central terms of the discussion are unclear – as with the current confused state of sex and gender terminology. Sports organisations and sports researchers often talk in gender terms when they mean sex; or use the sex and gender vocabularies interchangeably. We propose the use of terminology that distinguishes sex from gender. Historically, sport has been based on sex, as seen in various sex verification procedures specifying female eligibility, based on the determination of sex by biological criteria. We think that this should be reflected in the vocabulary used for the two sport categories (‘male’ and ‘female’, not ‘women’ and ‘men’); and for referring to the binary as the sex binary (not the gender binary); and for calling the procedures sex verification (not gender verification).

The End of Compulsory Gender Verification: Is It Progress for Inclusion of Women in Sports?

Recently, the so-called Semenya case has brought the problem of gender in sports competitions back into the spotlight. But the fact is that it is not a unique case; rather, it seems a recurrent and inconclusive problem in the history of sports. In this context, the Spanish athlete Martínez-Patiño is an important figure in the history of sport and gender verification, as well as the Indian sprinter Dutee Chand. Martínez-Patiño’s story thus serves as an important case study of the gender-based anxieties that hampered women’s advancement in track and field. Martínez-Patiño’s experience in Spanish athletics demonstrates the difficulties women faced when attempting to compete in track and field, both in Spain and internationally. Moreover, her experience with gender policies shows the inadequacies of the chromosomal check as a sex marker, as well as the harms caused by the technique. Finally, Martínez-Patiño’s protest of the International Association of Athletics Federations’ policy started to dismantle compulsory sex verification used as a criterion for gender eligibility. The publicity surrounding her case pushed the track and field federation to abandon mandatory, on-site testing in 1992. Seven years later, the International Olympic Committee also dropped its compulsory control. Martínez-Patiño became the face of the fight against sex/gender verification in sport and helped dismantle the practice. The case of Martinez-Patiño remains in the collective memory of elite sports and serves as an argument for national and international sporting institutions to reconsider discriminating policies in the context of progress being made for women’s rights.

The Medical Examination of Lady Competitors: Sex Control in Skiing, 1967–2000

The International Ski Federation (FIS) instituted sex testing protocols in 1967. In doing so, it followed the example set by the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) and became the second international federation to institute some form of compulsory sex control, before the International Olympic Committee implemented its sex verification policy in 1968. Despite initially looking to the track and field federation for guidance, the FIS eventually diverged in procedure, method, and timing. It required testing occur in women skiers’ home countries before competition, introduced testosterone levels into the equation, and continued mandatory checks until 2000, after the IAAF had abandoned routine, on-site controls. An analysis of the FIS sex verification policies exposes a deep and long-lasting anxiety about the appropriateness of women in all sports, not just in track and field; identifies the introduction of hormonal analysis into sex verification; and shows the unintended consequences of sex testing when done at the national level.

Construction of a high-density linkage map and QTL detection of growth and sex in blotched snakehead (Channa maculata)

High-density genetic linkage maps are comprehensively used in quantitative trait loci (QTLs) mapping, trait-related genes identification, marker-assisted selection, genome assembly and comparative genomic analysis in domestic species. The blotched snakehead (Channa maculata) is an important aquaculture species in China and Southeast Asia, but the genetic improvement was lagged by lacking of genomic information. In this study, the first high-density genetic linkage map was constructed for blotched snakehead using 2b-RAD sequencing technology. The consensus map consists of 6352 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers that are assigned to 21 linkage groups (LGs) and spanning 2143.7 cM with an average marker interval of 0.34 cM. Comparative genomic analysis revealed 1:1 and/or 1:2 syntenic relationships between blotched snakehead LGs and chromosomes of medaka, European seabass and northern snakehead separately. Nine chromosome-wide QTLs associated with body weight were identified in three LGs, explaining 9.8–11.9% of the phenotypic variation. Putative candidate genes for growth rate, such as bone morphogenetic protein 6 (BMP 6), were identified adjacent to the QTLs. A single major locus tightly linked to sex was identified in LG2 that explained 98.8–100% of the phenotypic variation.Four markers within the sex-linked locus were found to be heterogametic in males and homogametic in females. One sex-specific SNP marker located in the sex QTL region was validated for practical verification of sex in blotched snakehead. Those results suggest that the LG2 may be a sex-related chromosome in blotched snakehead and an XX/XY chromosomal sex determination system in this species. The high-density linkage map and QTLs supply a basis for genome evolutionary studies, QTL fine mapping of economic traits and sex-control breeding in blotched snakehead.

Identifying Sex of Neonate Turtles with Temperature-dependent Sex Determination via Small Blood Samples

Temperature-dependent sex determination, present in most turtle species, is a mechanism that uses temperature to direct the sex of the embryo. The rapid increase of global temperatures highlights the need for a clear assessment of how sex ratios of organisms with TSD are affected. In turtles with TSD, quantifying primary sex ratios is challenging because they lack external dimorphism and heteromorphic sex chromosomes. Here we describe a new technique used to identify sex in neonate turtles of two TSD species, a freshwater turtle (Trachemys scripta) and a marine turtle (Caretta caretta) via analysis of small blood samples. We used an immunoassay approach to test samples for the presence of several proteins known to play an important role in sex differentiation. Our results show that Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) can be reliably detected in blood samples from neonate male turtles but not females and can be used as a sex-specific marker. Verification of sex via histology or laparoscopy revealed that this method was 100% reliable for identifying sex in both T. scripta and C. caretta 1–2 day-old hatchlings and 90% reliable for identifying sex in 83–177 day-old (120–160 g) loggerhead juveniles. The method described here is minimally invasive, and for the first time, greatly enhances our ability to measure neonate turtle sex ratios at population levels across nesting sites worldwide, a crucial step in assessing the impact of climate change on imperiled turtle species.

On Integrity and the Risk of Generational Loss: Narratives of Preservation and Threat Underlie Policies Restricting Natural Testosterone in Women Athletes

Abstract Though its claims to “leveling the playing field,” are dubious, sex verification remains part of elite women's athletics. One of its latest iterations, testing and treatment for “excessive testosterone,” is championed by sports governing bodies on the grounds of “preserving the integrity of female competition.” I examine this claim in light of the decade of scrutiny South African runner Caster Semenya has endured regarding her sex. Contextualizing Semenya's case historically and in light of current science reveals two imperatives driving sports governing bodies' hyperandrogenism policies: (1) promoting a historically and structurally bounded idea of how athletic female bodies should look; and (2) presenting the performance capacity of visually concordant athletic female physiques as the measure of female athleticism. Testing and treatment for “excessive testosterone,” applies science in service of hegemonic norms regarding physique, prowess, and heterosexual appeal. Hyperandrogenism testing preserves integrity of type, not integrity of competition.

Establishment and Verification of Sex- and Age-Specific Serum Electrolyte Reference Intervals in Healthy Han Children in Changchun, Northeastern China.

For lack of feasible interval values from population differences and potential analytical discrepancies, it is essential to ascertain potassium (K), sodium (Na), chlorine (Cl), calcium (Ca), and phosphorus (P) ions reference intervals within Chinese children to fill the gap. Healthy children (n = 1391, 2–<15 years old) were recruited from communities and schools to establish sex- and age-specific serum electrolyte reference intervals of Han children in Changchun, China. Levels of serum K, Na, Cl, Ca, and P were measured using a Hitachi 7600-210 automatic biochemical analyzer. Reference intervals were established according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute EP28-A3c guidelines. Data from five representative hospitals located across Changchun were used to verify pediatric serum electrolyte reference intervals. Values were different from adult reference intervals in China. There were sex-specific differences in Na, Cl, Ca, and P reference intervals in 13-<14 children. Serum Na, Cl, and Ca reference intervals showed stable trends within early age groups but fluctuated in teens. Each serum electrolyte had ≤3 age-specific reference intervals. Five laboratories suggested reference intervals were applicable across Changchun.

High-density genetic linkage map and QTL fine mapping of growth and sex in snakehead (Channa argus)

High-density genetic linkage maps are essential for quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, candidate gene identification, marker-assisted selection, genome assembly and comparative genomic analysis in aquaculture species. Snakehead (Channa argus) is an important aquaculture species in China, but the genetic improvement of this species is still in its infancy. In this study, a high-density genetic linkage map was constructed for snakehead using 2b-RAD sequencing technology. The consensus map contains 3151 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers assigned to 24 linkage groups (LGs) and spanning 2728.9 cM with an average marker interval of 0.87 cM. Comparative genomics revealed a 1:1 syntenic relationship between snakehead LGs and chromosomes of medaka and European seabass. Fourteen chromosome-wide QTLs associated with body weight and body length were identified in five LGs, explaining 9.6–12.8% of the phenotypic variation. Potential candidate growth-related genes, such as SATB homeobox 2 (satb2), were identified within the QTL intervals. A single major locus for sex determination was identified in LG5 that explained 97.4–100% of the phenotypic variation. Six markers with a sex-determining locus were found to be heterogametic in males and homogametic in females. A sex-specific SNP marker located in the sex QTL region was validated for practical verification of sex in snakehead. All of the results suggest an XX/XY sex determination system in this species. This high-density genetic map and QTL analysis supply a basis for genome evolutionary studies, genome assembly and QTL fine mapping of complex traits in snakehead.

Construction of a High-Density Linkage Map and QTL Fine Mapping for Growth- and Sex-Related Traits in Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus).

A high-density genetic linkage map is of particular importance in the fine mapping for important economic traits and whole genome assembly in aquaculture species. The channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus), a species native to North America, is one of the most important commercial freshwater fish in the world. Outside of the United States, China has become the major producer and consumer of channel catfish after experiencing rapid development in the past three decades. In this study, based on restriction site associated DNA sequencing (RAD-seq), a high-density genetic linkage map of channel catfish was constructed by using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a F1 family composed of 156 offspring and their two parental individuals. A total of 4,768 SNPs were assigned to 29 linkage groups (LGs), and the length of the linkage map reached 2,480.25 centiMorgans (cM) with an average distance of 0.55 cM between loci. Based on this genetic linkage map, 223 genomic scaffolds were anchored to the 29 LGs of channel catfish, and a total length of 704.66 Mb was assembled. Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping and genome-wide association analysis identified 10 QTLs of sex-related and six QTLs of growth-related traits at LG17 and LG28, respectively. Candidate genes associated with sex dimorphism, including spata2, spata5, sf3, zbtb38, and fox, were identified within QTL intervals on the LG17. A sex-linked marker with simple sequence repeats (SSR) in zbtb38 gene of the LG17 was validated for practical verification of sex in the channel catfish. Thus, the LG17 was considered as a sex-related LG. Potential growth-related genes were also identified, including important regulators such as megf9, npffr1, and gas1. In a word, we constructed the high-density genetic linkage map and developed the sex-linked marker in channel catfish, which are important genetic resources for future marker-assisted selection (MAS) of this economically important teleost.

The role of electrocardiogram in sex verification in a young adult with primary amenorrhea: a case report

BackgroundThe use of electrocardiogram for sex verification in adults is an emerging concept in medicine. It is feasible through the utilization of Ogunlade Sex Determination Electrocardiographic Score. The aim of this study was to use an electrocardiogram to verify the sex of a woman with primary amenorrhea.Case presentationWe report a case of a 36-year-old woman of Yoruba ethnicity who presented with primary amenorrhea. A physical examination revealed a woman with a feminine appearance characterized by long plaited hair and well-developed breasts. As part of the investigations to unravel the sex status, she had a resting standard 12-lead electrocardiogram which revealed a masculine electrocardiogram pattern with Ogunlade Sex Determination Electrocardiographic Score of 9 (T-wave pattern in lead V1, 3; ST segment in lead V2 or V3, 3; QRS rotation, 2; heart rate of 79, 1). An abdominopelvic ultrasonography done by a radiologist showed absence of uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries. When our patient was considered for transvaginal scan, she declined but embraced translabial ultrasound as she claimed to be a virgin. Translabial ultrasonography revealed the presence of undescended hypoplastic testes with associated testicular microlithiasis at the external inguinal rings bilaterally. Karyotyping using a blood sample revealed 46,XY and a sex-determining region Y report showed that the blood sample was positive for the SRY gene confirming the status as male. This synchronized with the initial electrocardiogram evaluation. The testes were later removed.ConclusionThis report concluded that an electrocardiogram as a cheap, readily available and non-invasive test has a role in sex verification in young adults with primary amenorrhea.

FRI-17 “WALK LIKE A MAN”: SEX TESTING AND FEMALE GENDER IDENTITY IN INTERNATIONAL ATHLETIC COMPETITION

You have accessJournal of UrologyHistory of Urology: History Forum1 Apr 2017FRI-17 “WALK LIKE A MAN”: SEX TESTING AND FEMALE GENDER IDENTITY IN INTERNATIONAL ATHLETIC COMPETITION Unwanaobong Nseyo Unwanaobong NseyoUnwanaobong Nseyo More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2017.02.2482AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES During the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic Games, Caster Semenya participated in the 800m finals and won gold. Her win, while a personal accomplishment, also had historical implications. Seven years prior, questions began to be raised about her gender ultimately leading to her temporary ban from athletic competition while she underwent “sex verification testing.” The sex-testing to which she was subjected had a historical precedent. This paper seeks to explore the historical narrative surrounding intersex disorders as the presented in the form of female athletic competition. METHODS A literature review was conducted in PubMed which identified primary and secondary sources regarding “sex testing” and “femininity certificates.” These sources were reviewed in order to evaluate the sociocultural context of sex testing among female athletes in international competition. RESULTS Sex testing began in earnest in the 1950s with the mandatory sex testing of female athletes during the European Championships, although rumblings of questioning the ender of female athletes pre-dated the creation of this mandatory law. In the 1930s, as women became increasingly involved in athletic competition, women's bodies were scrutinized if they appeared too “male-like” or exhibited athletic exceptionalism. Early sprinters such as Dora Ratjen of Germany and Stella Walsh of Poland were driven away from the sport due to claims that they were in fact men. Once testing became official, it consisted of invasive physical examinations, heavily focused on the genitalia as women were asked to “parade nude before a panel of doctors.” Often as a direct response to these athletic community's inquiries into their sexual identity, these female athletes, who were branded as male and termed “hermaphrodite” subsequently underwent surgical reassignment. While testing transitioned to include genetic and hormone testing, the results remained relatively inconclusive and significantly altered the lives of the women on whom they were conducted. CONCLUSIONS Historically, dominant performances by women on the international athletic stage called into question their gender identity. Invasive sex testing was performed and many of the individuals who were investigated would be identified as intersex today. Contemporary discussions of transgender identity add a new layer of complexity to examinations of the intersection of gender and athletic competition as transgender athletes made history in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games by competing without having undergone gender reassignment surgery. © 2017FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 197Issue 4SApril 2017Page: e1066 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2017MetricsAuthor Information Unwanaobong Nseyo More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...

‘Well everyone has something’: a case study of a collegiate athlete with congenital adrenal hyperplasia

In popular culture, two narratives have emerged about people with intersex conditions: female athletes being subjected to sex verification tests and adults born with ambiguous genitalia who had surgery as infants and were not satisfied with the long-term outcomes. A number of scholarly articles critique policy aimed at international calibre athletes who have or have been suspected of having one particular intersex condition (hyperandrogenism). What is missing is the voice of the athletes themselves. Framed within feminist cultural studies and transfeminism, our case study explored the experiences of a U.S. university athlete with an intersex condition. Amanda (a pseudonym), who has congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), competes in U.S. University NCAA Division III soccer. She participated in a semi-structured interview and follow-up e-mail discussion framed using narrative and life history approaches. Our narrative analysis identified three overarching themes presented as vignettes: The Medical Side of CAH tells of her experiences with medical personnel and her treatment. In Personal Experience with CAH Amanda addresses how she manages the discourse surrounding her CAH. The final vignette, the Sporting Experience vignette describes her sport involvement as an athlete with CAH. Overall, Amanda’s experiences are very different from international athletes with intersex conditions whose stories have been revealed in the popular press and other individuals with intersex conditions who were dismayed with their medical treatment.

Quality Control for the Illumina HumanExome BeadChip.

The Illumina HumanExome BeadChip and other exome-based genotyping arrays offer inexpensive genotyping of some 240,000 mostly nonsynonymous coding variants across the human genome. The HumanExome chip, with its highly non-uniform distribution of markers and emphasis on rare coding variants, presents some unique challenges for quality control (QC) and data cleaning. Here, we describe QC procedures for HumanExome data, with examples of challenges specific to exome arrays from our experience cleaning a data set of ∼7,500 samples from the NEIGHBORHOOD Consortium. We focus on standard procedures for QC of genome-wide array data including genotype calling, sex verification, sample identity verification, relationship checking, and population structure that are complicated by the HumanExome panel's enrichment in rare, exonic variation. © 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Drug Testing, Sex Verification, and the 1967 Pan-American Games

Despite frequent claims that invasive methods of sex verification and early procedures for doping detection were used in 1966 and 1967 at different major international sport competitions, little is known about the origins and rationales for implementing such procedures. This paper focuses on the drug testing and sex verification protocols implemented at the 1967 Pan-American Games held in Winnipeg. Specifically, it explores the conditions that led to these protocols, as well as the details of and the arguments invoked for their implementation. To do so, archival material, media coverage featured in English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish newspapers and magazines across the Americas, and oral histories are analyzed and discussed. The paper demonstrates that neither the sex verification nor the drug testing protocol was mandatory for all athletes and only two very specific groups of athletes were targeted. It also demonstrates that in the case of the former, exceptions were made within the specific group targeted. The paper concludes that the rudimentary protocols applied at the 1967 Pan-American Games likely informed the IOC Medical Commission’s doping and sex-testing policies implemented at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics and Grenoble Winter Olympics.

Evaluation of electrocardiogram as a biological signal for sex verification among fresh undergraduates in a Nigerian tertiary institution

Background: Sex verification using electrocardiogram (ECG) is a new application of the biological signal. Objective: This study aimed to determine the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and accuracy of an electrocardiographic score in sex verification. Methods: A total of 2442 apparently healthy fresh undergraduates who presented for health screening in a tertiary institution were recruited for the study. The technical team documented the sex of the participants and had their resting 12-lead ECG recorded according to standard protocol. Two physicians who were blinded to the participants and the recorded sex utilized Ogunlade Sex Determination Electrocardiographic Score (OSDES) to determine the sex. The validity of OSDES was estimated using sex recorded by the technical team as the standard while the accuracy of scoring system was determined using receiver operating characteristic curve. Results: The mean (± standard deviation) of age of the participants was 20.71 ± 3.62 years. Among the male population, true positives (TPs), false positives (FPs), false negatives (FNs), and true negatives (TN) were 1131, 49, 90, and 1172, respectively. Among the females TP, FP, FN, and TN were 1172, 90, 49, and 1131, respectively. Among males, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV were 92.63% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 91.02-94.03%), 95.99% (95% CI: 94.73-97.02%), 95.85% (95% CI: 94.55-96.91%), and 92.87% (CI: 91.31-94.23%) respectively while among the females, the sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV were 95.99% (95% CI: 94.73-97.02%), 92.63% (95% CI: 91.02-94.03%), 92.87% (95% CI: 91.31-94.23%), and 95.85% (95% CI: 91.02-94.03%) respectively. The area under curve was 0.943. Conclusion: This study concluded that ECG has a reasonable level of sensitivity and specificity with excellent accuracy in verification of sex among fresh Nigerian undergraduates.