Chromosome inversion
Chromosome inversion: A condition in which a chromosome segment is clipped out, turned upside down, and reinserted back into the chromosome. A chromosome inversion can be inherited from one or both parents, or it may be a mutation that appears in a child whose family has no history of chromosome inversion. An inversion can be ‘balanced,’ meaning that it has all the genes that are present in a normal chromosome; or it can be ‘unbalanced,’ meaning that genes have been deleted (lost) or duplicated. A balanced inversion causes no problems. An unbalanced inversion is often associated with problems such as developmental delay, mental retardation, and birth defects.
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- Chromosome inversion, paracentric
Chromosome inversion, paracentric: A type of chromosome rearrangement in which a chromosomal segment that does not include the centromere (and is therefore paracentric) is snipped out of a chromosome, inverted, and inserted back into the chromosome. The feature that makes it paracentric is that both breaks are on the same side of the centromere, so […]
- Chromosome inversion, pericentric
Chromosome inversion, pericentric: A basic type of chromosome rearrangement in which a segment that includes the centromere (and is therefore pericentric) is snipped out of a chromosome, inverted, and inserted back into the chromosome. The feature that makes it pericentric is that the breaks are on both sides of the centromere.
- Chromosome map
Chromosome map: The chart of the linear array of genes on a chromosome. A chromosome map can also refer to the visual appearance of a chromosome when stained and examined under a microscope. Particularly important are visually distinct regions, called light and dark bands, which give each of the chromosomes a unique appearance. This feature […]
- Chromosome, acentric
Chromosome, acentric: A fragment of a chromosome that lacks a centromere, so that the chromosome is lost when the cell divides.
- Chromosome, acrocentric
Chromosome, acrocentric: A chromosome that has its centromere located near one end of the chromosome. Humans have five pairs of acrocentric chromosomes. Down syndrome is due to an extra acrocentric chromosome (chromosome 21).