Why do kids with down syndrome look so similar?
Asked by
willbrawn (
6619
)
December 18th, 2009
If I spelled that wrong let me know. Just curious. I saw two kids with the same disability and was curious why they both look the same. And they weren’t related.
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9 Answers
it would seem that the gene that causes this condition also has the capability of determining features
@Kelly_Obrien So do people with cancer but they dn’t all look the same!
I don’t know the scientific reason but I would imagine the @strange1 hit the nail on the head.
The condition is caused by a duplication of the 21st chromosome, which means a lot of things are involved. Since serious genetic issues like duplicated chromosomes are rarely survivable (that is, often lead to a miscarriage), Down Syndrome is one of the few that actually go to term.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down_syndrome#Characteristics covers the specific physical differences
they might think that we all look the same.
Why are all people with Dwarfism so short?
It’s part of the syndrome.
Anything affecting the chromosomes affects a beings appearance in a predictable way. So, all people with Down’s syndrome look similar. Just as healthy people with healthy chromosomes look the same, people with Down’s look the same. And beings with 12 chromosomes look like a cactus, and beings with 32 chromosomes look like mosquitoes. (I made up the numbers here).
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