Color blindness B y : M a r e i M ü n s t e r, M o l l y S u l l i v a n, a n d A l e x a n d r a O l i v a n

What is Color blindness??? It is a genetic disorder that is the inability to distinguish different colors of the spectrum It's caused by X- linked mutation in either the long- (L) or the middle- (M) wavelength-sensitive visual photo pigments. People diagnosed with color blindness can see limited range In a rare condition you can only see shades of gray. Color blindness is a trait that is only found on the x- chromosome

Inheritance Color blindness is usually inherited or passed down from the P generation to the offspring It affects more men then women because women have a second x-chromosome which usually masks the abnormal gene If the x in the male is recessive than he will display the trait If the women does have this gene then it can be passed on from the woman to the child

Cones of color Someone with normal color vision has receptor cells called cones, which are located at the retina of the eye A mixture of red, green, and blue region pigments make up the various colors that a normal color vision would see There are 3 types of cones termed: Red Blue Green These let you see the wide range of color in the spectrum An abnormality with the cones result in abnormal color vision

Types of Color blindness Some people can see red/green (protanopia) which is the most common type of color blindness Some people have blue color blindness-> which disguises the colors blue and yellow (trinopia) This affects both men and women equally because there is no x-chromosome Rarest type of color blindness-> achromatopsia This is where people can only see shades of gray and squint in regular light

Tritan Normal Deutan Protan Deuteranopia: Red/Green Protanopia: Red/Green To determine the type of color blindness they use pigment tests achromatopsia : Shades of gray Tritanopia: Blue/yellow

Signs and symptoms of color blindness. Include trouble seeing colors and brightness of colors in there usual way. Inability to tell difference between shades of the same colors. Sometimes people are unaware that they are color blind because symptoms are so mild A parent may also notice that there child is color blind when they are learning there colors Some times people discover that they are color blind when applying for a job such as pilot for the navy that requires them to pass a flight physical test.

Cure and treatment for color blindness There is no cure for inherited color blindness yet, but there are some treatments for non-inherited color blindness. For example if a cataract is causing a problem with color vision, surgery may restore normal color vision. However, there are special contact lenses and glasses that may help people with color blindness tell the difference between similar colors.

Research on Color Blindness. On the picture above a monkey is taking a color vision test. Researchers are using gene therapy on monkeys to try to cure red green color blindness. After weeks of treatment monkeys could see colors that they could never see before ! This has lead to many successes using gene therapy to treat people with inherited retinal diseases. These results could lead to cures and treatment to color blindness and eye diseases.

Fun Facts Some famous people that are color blind are Mr. Roger, Paul Newman, Bing Crosby and Howie Mandel. Some groups that are prone to that disease are 8% Caucasians, 5 %Asians, 4 % African Americans and it is more prone to males (8%) than females (0.5%). An English chemist John Dalton was the first to describe the condition This is why the scientific name for color blindness is daltonism Dogs, cats, horses, cows, and most other mammals are color blind

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