{
  "abstract": "Sex chromosomes in cannabis and hop were identified a century ago because of their obvious visible differences in size (heteromorphy). However, we know little about the genes they contain that control the development of the inflorescences. Here we assembled genomes, with phased sex chromosomes, for hop and cannabis. The XY chromosomes share an origin prior to the divergence between the genera >36 MYA. Due to the inheritance patterns of the XYs, the male-specific region of the Y is highly-degenerated, with substantial gene loss, while the X shows faster rates of molecular evolution. Consistent with the theory that these species lack an active-Y system, no clear sex-determining genes reside on the Y. Instead, an X-linked homolog of aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate synthase (ACS), that is involved in the ethylene biosynthesis pathway, determines the fate of the female inflorescence. Beyond sex determination, the sex chromosomes contribute to the sexual dimorphism in ecology and physiology and have played a role in the domestication and breeding of these species.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL, USA",
    "Department of Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA",
    "Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, USA",
    "The Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology Laboratory, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, USA",
    "New West Genetics, Windsor, CO, USA",
    "Horticulture Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Geneva, NY, USA",
    "Plant Genetic Resources Unit, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Geneva, NY, USA",
    "Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Wapato, WA, USA",
    "Science and Math Department, Tallahassee State College, FL, Tallahassee, USA",
    "Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA",
    "Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA",
    "Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA",
    "Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA",
    "Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA",
    "Department of Science and Conservation, San Diego Botanical Garden, Encinitas, CA, USA",
    "HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL, USA. aharkess@hudsonalpha.org"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 32,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Sarah B. Carey",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6431-0660"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Philip C. Bentz",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2232-7488"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "John T. Lovell",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8938-1166"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        0
      ],
      "name": "Laramie M. Akozbek",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3341-3509"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Zachary Myers",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7225-0290"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Walid Korani",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-5372-2240"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Joshua S. Havill",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7939-9047"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Lillian K. Padgitt‐Cobb",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3157-4990"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Ryan C. Lynch",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2032-6078"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Nicholas A. Allsing",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1145-1646"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Jack Mangels"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5,
        6
      ],
      "name": "Zachary J. Stansell",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-4997-3383"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5,
        6
      ],
      "name": "George M. Stack",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5176-6925"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6
      ],
      "name": "Tyler C. Gordon",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0127-4551"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Austin Osmanski"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7,
        8
      ],
      "name": "Katherine A. Easterling",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2961-7875"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Leonardo R. Orozco"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Zach E Marcus"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Haley J. Hale",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3318-8383"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hanna J. McCoy",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1694-1943"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1,
        0
      ],
      "name": "Zachary Meharg",
      "orcid": "0009-0004-7382-8527"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jane Grimwood",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8356-8325"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Lawrence B. Smart",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7812-7736"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Daniela Vergara",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-7682-6605"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10
      ],
      "name": "Rafael F. Guerrero",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-8451-3609"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Nolan C. Kane",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9133-6543"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Rich Fletcher"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        11,
        4
      ],
      "name": "John K. McKay"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        12,
        13,
        14,
        3
      ],
      "name": "Todd P. Michael",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6272-2875"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Gary J. Muehlbauer",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9320-2629"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Josh Paul Clevenger",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9830-9481"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        15
      ],
      "name": "Alex Harkess",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-2035-0871"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/05sz6mbjpp6k8.bib",
  "cited_by": 18,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41467-026-73233-7",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "05sz6mbjpp6k8",
  "issns": [
    "2041-1723"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-73233-7",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1311|Genetic and Clinical Aspects of Sex Determination and Chromosomal Abnormalities"
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  "openalex": "W7162471156",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": "PMC12330646",
  "pmid": "40777449",
  "published": "2026-05-26",
  "publisher": "Nature Portfolio",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/05sz6mbjpp6k8.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T13:26:46Z",
      "native_id": "W7162471156",
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      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-73233-7"
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:1311|Genetic and Clinical Aspects of Sex Determination and Chromosomal Abnormalities",
      "subfield": "genetics-genomics"
    }
  ],
  "title": "An X-linked sex determination mechanism in cannabis and hop",
  "title_text": "An X-linked sex determination mechanism in cannabis and hop",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T13:20:41Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/05sz6mbjpp6k8",
  "venue": "Nature Communications",
  "versions": []
}