Science News & Science Current Events
 
Email a Friend Send to a friend
Printer Friendly Print Double identities lie behind chromosome disorders

Double identities lie behind chromosome disorders

July 09, 2007

Chromosome disorders in sex cells cause infertility, miscarriage and irregular numbers of chromosomes (aneuploidy) in neonates. A new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the scientific journal Nature Genetics shows how chromosome disorders can arise when sex cells are formed.

Sex cells contain a control station for monitoring the mechanism that ensures that the correct numbers of chromosomes are distributed during cell division. Scientists have now shown that there is an alternative distribution mechanism in female sex cells that cause chromosome disorders. Aberrant chromosomes orientate themselves like normal chromosomes, and this ability to adopt double identities protects them from detection by the control centre.




"We believe that this new fundamental mechanism can help to explain why chromosome disorders are so common in female sex cells," says Professor Christer Höög, leader of the study.

The research might eventually lead to new medical treatments able to reduce the risk of foetal damage.

Over 0.3 per cent of children are born with some kind of chromosome disorder. Most develop Downs Syndrome, or obtain the wrong number of sex chromosomes and develop Turner's or Klinefelter's syndrome. Turner's syndrome only occurs in females and is caused when one of the two X chromosomes is missing. Girls with Turner's have arrested development and if no treatment is given do not enter puberty. Klinefelter's syndrome affects males, who receive an extra X chromosome. Symptoms include concentration difficulties, poor motor skills and infertility.

Karolinska Institutet



Related Chromosome Disorders Current Events and Chromosome Disorders News Articles
Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) should be allowed in Germany: study reveals demand for a change in the law
Current legislation on preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) in Germany is out of step with the attitudes of Germans and should be changed, researchers told a news briefing at the 20th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology on Monday 28 June). At present PGD is forbidden in Germany, but in one of the first large study of attitudes to PGD amongst the general population and infertile couples in Germany, the researchers found that the majority of Germans think the technique should be permitted. Dr Ada Borkenhagen, a psychologist and researcher at Charité Berlin, together with colleagues at the Berlin Fertility Centre and the universities of Leipzig
More Chromosome Disorders Current Events and Chromosome Disorders News Articles
The chromosome disorders: An introduction for clinicians
by G. H Valentine

The Chromosome Disorders
by G. H Valentine

Ataxia telangiectasia/chromosome breakage disorders: An entry from Thomson Gale's Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health: Infancy through Adolescence
by Monique, Ph.D. Laberge

Avoiding hard-to-understand medical jargon, the four-volume “Gale Encyclopedia of Children’s Health” uses language that parents can understand, while still providing enough depth to benefit today's health science students. The set provides in-depth coverage of pediatric diseases and disorders, along with issues related to physical and cognitive/behavioral...

The Chromosome Disorders
by G.H. Valentine



Chromosome Abnormalities and Genetic Counseling (Oxford Monographs on Medical Genetics, No. 46)
by R. J. McKinlay Gardner, Grant R. Sutherland

Chromosomal abnormalities can cause disability in children, and reproductive difficulty in parents. Many parents and couples seek genetic counseling in order to learn why they, or a relative, may have had a child with a particular collection of medical problems and/or intellectual disability. There may have been a history of multiple miscarriage, or infertility. They may want to know the...

The Chromosomes and Their Disorders: An Introduction for Clinicians
by G. H. Valentine

Chromosomal abnormalities: An entry from Thomson Gale's Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders, 2nd ed.
by Michelle, MS, CGC Bosworth

Information on many genetic disorders, and the frequent new findings on them, has been extremely difficult to come by—until now. The “Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders” addresses the need for current, hard-to-find facts on emerging discoveries. The two-volume Encyclopedia, presented in a single alphabetical sequence, provides clear, complete information on genetic disorders, including...

Inherited disorders: An entry from Thomson Gale's Gale Encyclopedia of Science, 3rd ed.
by Robert G. Best

The “Gale Encyclopedia of Science” is written at a level somewhere between the introductory sources and the highly technical texts currently available. This six-volume set covers all major areas of science and engineering, as well as mathematics and the medical and health sciences, while providing a comprehensive overview of current scientific knowledge and technology. Alphabetically arranged...

Chromosome 9q may be linked to panic disorder.(Adult Psychiatry): An article from: Clinical Psychiatry News
by Patrice G.W. Norton

This digital document is an article from Clinical Psychiatry News, published by International Medical News Group on August 1, 2004. The length of the article is 708 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web...



Catalogue of Unbalanced Chromosome Aberrations in Man
by Albert Schinzel

This book presents a comprehensive and updated catalogue of the already large, and rapidly growing number of chromosome aberrations in man. The consistent structure of the text and references provide for rapid orientation. The catalogue is an important help for any clinician treating patients with autosomal chromosome aberrations as well as for physicians and biologists working in cytogenic...

© 2008 BrightSurf.com