Some individuals have a combination of characteristics that are both male and female - genitalia, gonads and chromosomes. What are these individuals known as?

1 Answer
Nov 7, 2017

I think the term you are looking for is "Hermaphrodite"...
Still largely used in Biology, though when it concerns Humans it seems to have been replaced with a newer term: "InterSex".

Explanation:

Not sure if I agree with you on the term "chromosomes"...
Each of us has 46 chromosomes, 23 from your mother and 23 from your father. Leaving the famous #X# and #Y#-chromosomes out, the other 44 have a, let's say, 1:1 relationship regarding the location of Genes.

An Ovum (the Female "Egg"-cell) contains only a single complement, i.e the 22 "sex-less" chromosomes (also known as Autosomes") and the #X#-chromosome.

After fertilisation a second set of autosomes (from the father via the sperm-cell) is introduces, together with either an #X#- or a #Y# chromosome.

Chromosomes are basically "suitcases" for the transport of the DNA molecules during Mitosis, Meiosis and Cleaving .

In an operating cell the chromosomes "dissolve", leaving the DNA in its active form. In that state individual DNA-strands can align with their counterparts ( e.g. DNA-strand from Chromosome 18 from the father aligning with DNA from Chromosome 18 from the mother).

During this intertwining the strands can break, and be repaired to the opposite strand. This is known as "Crossover", and the mechanism by which "family-traits" from both father and mother can be passed on to grand-children, To understand this, keep in mind that during sexual mating each partner contributes only a SINGLE set of chromosomes....

Crossover is common in the autosomes, and a major mechanism in Evolution. Unfortunately, due to its random nature it can often lead to disasters: congenital afflictions, or early Abortus Naturalis if it impacts a critical gene.
Less common is Crossover between the strands in the #X#- and #Y# chromosomes. But it does happen, and this usually gives rise to a confusing sexual appearance. For more info, try Googling TDF and SRY.... Apart from that, an odd number of X/Y combinations can have "abnormal" results regarding sexual profile as well....