“Genesis” means the origin and growth of something. Adding the prefix “dys” to a word generally means you’re indicating something hasn’t worked as it should have. So “dysgenesis” means “not developed correctly.”
Gonadal dysgenesis refers to the situation when a person’s gonads (ovaries or testes) did not develop properly during fetal development. Sometimes dysgenic gonads are referred to as “streak gonads” because they resemble streaks of cells rather than looking ball-like, as testes and ovaries normally look.
Dysgenic gonads do not function like ovaries or testes. They are not capable of contributing to reproduction. In some circumstances, they represent a high risk of gonadal cancer, and so they are surgically removed soon after diagnosis.
There are a number of different DSD that can result in gonadal dygensis, including Turner syndrome and Swyer syndrome.
Posted in: Specific Conditions