Genetic Disorders

Genetic disorders are a topic in biology that can not be avoided. The fact is that genetic disorders can happen in humans, plants or animal. No one and nothing is safe from a genetic disorder. A genetic disorder can appear in the first years off life, or can appear much later in life when least expected. A basic principal of biology states that the behavior of chromosomes during the meiosis process can account for genetic inheritance patterns. There are many reasons for genetic disorders. To start it is important to understand what a genetic disorder is. It is a mutation in the genetic material of a person. The mutant gene is transmitted through birth. These genetic mutations can create serious complications and even death. It is important to understand how people get certain traits and genes. A person receives one set of chromosomes and genes from each person. That means each person inherits the traits. One gene may be more influential then another in developing specific traits. The more powerful gene is called the dominant gene and the less powerful is the recessive. A variation of a gene and the trait it controls, such as the color of ones eyes or hair is called in allele. Most diseases have genetic disorders. A diseases springs from genetics that are passed along from the parents. So called genetic diseases can be classified in 3 ways single gene defects, chromosomal disorders and multi factorial. 1 in 200 births have single gene defects. There are over 6000 different known single gene disorders. These kind of disorders are characterized by the way they are carried through a family. In dominant inheritance the child of a carrier has a fifty percent chance of inheriting the gene. The parents of the children with genetic disorders are definitely carriers. While in recessive inheritance the parents do not necessarily have the gene. The chances vary with each generation of recessive genes. It also depends on the sex of the baby. Recessive traits can