Jenny Graves is an Australian geneticist born on 24 November 1941 in Adelaide. She built her career studying sex chromosomes, working at La Trobe University and the Australian National University after training at the University of Adelaide and the University of California, Berkeley. Her research on kangaroos and other species reshaped how scientists understand the origins and fate of the Y chromosome. She published her first paper on sex genes in 1967, and has described the Y chromosome’s degraded state in blunt terms, calling it a “DNA junkyard.”
Key facts
- Born: 24 November 1941
- Birthplace: Adelaide
- Country: Australia
- Occupation: geneticist; researcher; university teacher
- Employer: La Trobe University; Australian National University
- Education: University of Adelaide; University of California, Berkeley
- Awards: Officer of the Order of Australia; Centenary Medal; L’Oréal-UNESCO Award For Women in Science; Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science
Early research and the kangaroo question
As an undergraduate honours student, Graves set out to answer whether kangaroos employ X-inactivation. They do, and the finding marked one of her first contributions to the field she would spend decades working in.
Her first paper on sex genes appeared in 1967, beginning a long line of work connecting marsupial genetics to broader questions about sex determination in mammals.
The search for the sex-determining gene
Geneticist David Page believed he had found the testis-determining gene, ZFY, and contacted Graves to confirm the finding in kangaroos. The gene turned out to sit on chromosome 5 in kangaroos rather than on the Y chromosome, undermining Page’s claim. Sinclair subsequently identified the actual sex-determining gene, naming it SRY.
Career setbacks and recognition
Graves overcame a near-fatal illness during her career, coinciding with a collapse in research funding, before going on to receive the L’Oreal Prize for Women in Science. She has also been named an Officer of the Order of Australia and received the Centenary Medal and the Prime Minister’s Prizes for Science.
The disappearing Y chromosome
Graves has estimated that the human Y chromosome will take roughly another six or seven million years to disappear completely. Her description of the chromosome as a ‘DNA junkyard’ reflects decades of comparative genetic work across species, including kangaroos, that traced how much genetic material the Y has lost.
Did you know
- Graves has estimated it will take “another six or seven million years until the chromosome is completely gone,” referring to the human Y chromosome. (sciencefocus.com)
- She has called the Y chromosome the “DNA junkyard” in describing its degraded state. (sciencealert.com)
- As an undergraduate honours student, one of her first research projects asked whether kangaroos employ X-inactivation, which they do. (ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
- Jenny Graves published her first paper on sex genes in 1967. (theconversation.com)
Data sources
Data updated: 2026-11-10