How to determine if a disease is X or Y chromosome linked?

Sex-linked diseases are passed down through families through one of the X or Y chromosomes. X and Y are sex chromosomes. Dominant inheritance occurs when an abnormal gene from one parent causes disease even though the matching gene from the other parent is normal. The abnormal gene dominates. Recessive inheritance is when both matching genes must be abnormal to cause disease. If only one gene in the pair is abnormal, the disease does not occur, or is mild. Someone who has one abnormal gene (but no symptoms) is called a carrier. A carrier can pass this abnormal gene to his or her children. The term “sex-linked recessive“ usually refers to X-linked recessive. See also: Autosomal dominant Autosomal recessive Chromosome Gene Heredity and disease Inheritance Sex-linked dominant Information X-linked diseases usually occur in males. Males have only one X chromosome. A single recessive gene on that X chromosome will cause the disease. The Y chromosome is the other half of the XY gene pair in the male. However, the Y chromosome doesn’t contain most of the genes of the X chromosome. It therefore doesn’t protect the male. This is seen in diseases such as hemophilia and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. TYPICAL SCENARIOS For a given birth, if the mother is a carrier (only one abnormal X chromosome) and the father is a normal carrier: 25% chance of a healthy boy 25% chance of a boy with disease 25% chance of a healthy girl 25% chance of a carrier girl without disease If the father has the disease and the mother is a normal carrier: 100% chance of a healthy boy 100% chance of a carrier girl without disease X-LINKED RECESSIVE DISORDERS IN FEMALES Females can get an X-linked recessive disorder, but this is very rare. An abnormal gene on the X chromosome from each parent would be required, since a female has two X chromosomes. This could occur in the two scenarios below. For a given birth, if the mother is a carrier and the father has the disease: 25% chance of a healthy boy 25% chance of a boy with the disease 25% chance of a carrier girl 25% chance of a girl with the disease If the mother has the disease and the father has the disease: 100% chance of the child having the disease, whether boy or girl. The odds of either of these two scenarios are so low that X-linked recessive diseases are sometimes referred to as “male only“ diseases. However, this is not technically correct. Female carriers can have a normal X chromosome that is abnormally inactivated. This is called “skewed X-inactivation.“ These females may have symptoms similar to those of males. Alternative Names Inheritance - sex-linked recessive; Genetics - sex-linked recessive; X-linked recessive #HeredityAndDisease #XlinkedRecessive #AutosomalRecessive #Iherb #GeneticsExamQuestionsSolutions #Cancer #SexlinkedDominant #skewedXinactivation #Xlinked #GeneticExamQuestionsSolutions #chromosome #Genetics101 #sexlinkedRecessive #AutosomalDominant #genetics #biology #XlinkedTraits #genotype #phenotype #geneticDisease #geneticDisorder #DNA #RNA #geneticsDisorders #homozygous #hemizygous #chromosomes #XChromosomeInheritance #dominantTrait #geneticDesease