what is an autosome

An autosome is any chromosome that is not a sex chromosome. Humans have 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes (XX or XY) . Autosomes are numbered roughly in relation to their sizes, with the largest autosome being chromosome 1 and the smallest being chromosome 22. Autosomes still contain sexual determination genes even though they are not sex chromosomes. Autosomes control the inheritance of all an organisms characteristics except the sex-linked ones, which are controlled by the sex chromosomes. Numerical abnormalities in the autosomes are generally thought to result from meiotic nondisjunction, which can occur during either maternal or paternal gamete formation. Autosomes play diverse roles in the human body like harboring genes for the body's metabolism, functioning, and growth.