Color Blindness: Sex-Linked Genetic Disorders
Color Blindness
Contrary to its name, color blindness does not involve any actual blindness. Color blindness, also known as color vision deficiency; is an incapacity to see a certain array of colors under average conditions of lighting. To have total color blindness of any sort of color is a very rare occurrence. This sex- linked genetic disorder is fairly common, more than 250 million people are affected with color blindness worldwide, and not deadly. My mother has a color blindness that hinders her ability to differentiate between certain shades of blue and green as well as not being able to see highlighter yellow.
There are multiple different kinds of color blindness, each effecting the individuals color spectrum in different ways. Most cases of color blindness are passed on through the X chromosome, making it easier for females to avoid it. “Men in contrary can not oversteer the defective chromosome, because they are carrying just one X chromosome.”(1) However, some kinds of color blindness are passed on through different chromosomes making it evenly heritable in both males and females. …show more content…
There are on average, 3 types of cones in a person’s eyes.
One for red, green, or blue light. If only one of these cones is defective it will alter the entire color spectrum for that person. “A color vision problem isn't always inherited. In some cases, a person can have an acquired color vision problem.”(2) Color blindness can also develop from aging, diseases such as glaucoma, or an injury in the eye. The majority of color blind people inherit it from their carrier mothers. “Inherited color blindness is caused by abnormal photo pigments. These color-detecting molecules are located in cone-shaped cells within the retina, called cone
cells.”(3) Nobody else in my family has any kind of colorblindness except for my mother. She is unable to differentiate between shades of blue, green, and yellow. Blue-yellow color-blindness effects chromosome 7, so it is equally common in both genders. Although color blindness does not have an impact on overall health, it can have an effect on everyday life. “Color blindness can make it difficult to read color-coded information such as bar graphs and pie charts. This can be particularly troubling for children who aren’t yet diagnosed with color blindness, since educational materials are often color-coded.”(4) Especially when one does not yet know they are colorblind, a child could be deeply impacted in school as art materials are frequent among teaching them. There are many genetic disorders that cause harm to the individual making life nearly impossible to deal with. Color blindness is an innocent disorder that is very common 8% of men in Europe are diagnosed with it. There are rare cases of being born completely colorblind but for the most part it is just a common annoyance for those who have it. There is no cure to colorblindness, not even laser eye surgery can fix your genes. Many scientists are working very hard to try and cure colorblindness, but like the lack of curing in other genetic disorders, colorblindness is no easier anomaly. I know multiple people who have a type of color blindness, some with red-green, some with blue-yellow. I know I am a carrier of it since my mother has it, and there’s a possibility of me passing it on to my children.
Contrary to its name, color blindness does not involve any actual blindness. Color blindness, also known as color vision deficiency; is an incapacity to see a certain array of colors under average conditions of lighting. To have total color blindness of any sort of color is a very rare occurrence. This sex- linked genetic disorder is fairly common, more than 250 million people are affected with color blindness worldwide, and not deadly. My mother has a color blindness that hinders her ability to differentiate between certain shades of blue and green as well as not being able to see highlighter yellow.
There are multiple different kinds of color blindness, each effecting the individuals color spectrum in different ways. Most cases of color blindness are passed on through the X chromosome, making it easier for females to avoid it. “Men in contrary can not oversteer the defective chromosome, because they are carrying just one X chromosome.”(1) However, some kinds of color blindness are passed on through different chromosomes making it evenly heritable in both males and females. …show more content…
There are on average, 3 types of cones in a person’s eyes.
One for red, green, or blue light. If only one of these cones is defective it will alter the entire color spectrum for that person. “A color vision problem isn't always inherited. In some cases, a person can have an acquired color vision problem.”(2) Color blindness can also develop from aging, diseases such as glaucoma, or an injury in the eye. The majority of color blind people inherit it from their carrier mothers. “Inherited color blindness is caused by abnormal photo pigments. These color-detecting molecules are located in cone-shaped cells within the retina, called cone
cells.”(3) Nobody else in my family has any kind of colorblindness except for my mother. She is unable to differentiate between shades of blue, green, and yellow. Blue-yellow color-blindness effects chromosome 7, so it is equally common in both genders. Although color blindness does not have an impact on overall health, it can have an effect on everyday life. “Color blindness can make it difficult to read color-coded information such as bar graphs and pie charts. This can be particularly troubling for children who aren’t yet diagnosed with color blindness, since educational materials are often color-coded.”(4) Especially when one does not yet know they are colorblind, a child could be deeply impacted in school as art materials are frequent among teaching them. There are many genetic disorders that cause harm to the individual making life nearly impossible to deal with. Color blindness is an innocent disorder that is very common 8% of men in Europe are diagnosed with it. There are rare cases of being born completely colorblind but for the most part it is just a common annoyance for those who have it. There is no cure to colorblindness, not even laser eye surgery can fix your genes. Many scientists are working very hard to try and cure colorblindness, but like the lack of curing in other genetic disorders, colorblindness is no easier anomaly. I know multiple people who have a type of color blindness, some with red-green, some with blue-yellow. I know I am a carrier of it since my mother has it, and there’s a possibility of me passing it on to my children.