DNA regions in the 'open' conformation may therefore be more vulnerable to damaging toxins, such as those in cigarette smoke and certain anti-cancer drugs, than those that are tightly packaged. As Dr Brinkworth says, "this might mean that anything capable of causing genetic damage to sperm could have particular significance for the development of the embryo".

The findings also help explain why inter-species breeding is so rarely successful. Where the locks and keys of two species do not match, however similar their DNA is, no viable offspring can be born. Occasionally, for example, with horses and donkeys, offspring are produced - but because the sperm and egg signatures are incompatible, their development as embryos is abnormal and any offspring are almost always infertile.

The research team believes that the same mechanism must also have played a role during human evolution. In the ancient history of mankind, Neanderthals co-existed with modern humans over many thousands of years. Sexual encounters between these two closely related species cannot be ruled out, yet there is no evidence in our DNA of a legacy from such couplings. It is possible that if offspring were produced, they either did not survive long or if they did, they were unable to breed.

leeds.ac/ and bradford.ac