| sex offenses | Any violation of established legal or moral codes in respect to sexual behaviour. (12 Dec 1998) |
|---|---|
| sex pili | <cell biology> Fine filamentous projections (pili) on the surface of a bacterium that are important in conjugation. Often seem to be coded for by plasmids that confer conjugative potential on the host, in the case of the f plasmid, the F pili are 8-9nm diameter and several microns long, composed of pilin. Whether the pili merely serve to establish and maintain adhesive contact between the partners in conjugation or whether DNA is actually transferred through the central core of the pilus is still unresolved, although a simple adhesion role is more generally accepted. (18 Nov 1997) |
| sex preselection | Methods for control of genetic sex of offspring. (12 Dec 1998) |
| sex ratio | The number of males per 100 females. (12 Dec 1998) |
| sex reversal | A process whereby the sexual identity of an individual is changed from one sex to the other (e.g., by a combination of surgical, pharmacologic, and psychiatric procedures); it may also occur in the life history of pseudohermaphroditic individuals whose sex at birth was uncertain; initially reared as members of one gender or sex role, such individuals may, upon subsequent medical examination and advice, be reared thereafter as members of the opposite gender or sex role. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sex reversal, gonadal | Change from one sex to another with regard to gonadal development; may be induced or occurs naturally in some invertebrates. (12 Dec 1998) |
| sex role | The degree to which an individual acts out a stereotypical masculine or feminine role in everyday behaviour. Compare: gender role. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sex skin | The skin of the genital regions of the Macaca mulatta and other primates which becomes hyperaemic during estrus; at the same time the dermis becomes gelatinous and the epidermis thickened. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sex steroid-binding globulin | A protein that transports 65% of the testosterone in plasma. Synonym: sex steroid-binding globulin. (05 Mar 2000) |