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gloudon's picture

color blindness in women

 In class we talked about color blindness.  I read that color blindness is much more prevalent in men than it is women, because the gene is carried on the X chromosome.  It makes sense to me that if I women had one X chromosome with the color blind gene, that the non-affected chromosome would dictate control of the formation of cones in the eyes.  7% of males in the US are color blind, however only 0.4% of women are colorblind.  Do these 0.4% of women carry the color blindness gene on both of their X chromosomes?  If they only carried one, how would that mutated chromosome gain control and mess up the cones and or the pigmentation in the eyes when a normal X chromosome is present?

http://www.hhmi.org/senses/b130.html

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