Ask A Scientist© General Science Archive

> > >  name       nicole
> > >  status     student
> > >  age        15
>
> > >  Question - what causes deformity in a baby? how can it be avoided?
> > >and what can you do if it does happen to your child? is there any way
> > >to treat it?
>
>
>Nicole,
>The list of things that can cause deformities in infants is very long
>indeed. They fall into two general categories: genetic & environmental.
>Genetic factors come into play in cases like Down Syndrome where the face,
>among other features, has typical characteristics and there are also
>internal defects to a greater or lesser degree. In that example the
>individual has acquired an extra chromosome #21 during production of the egg
>(usually) or the sperm, or at least a large part of that chromosome during
>recombination which occurs during meiosis. Many other deformities, such as
>neural tube/spinal cord defects, can arise from a mutation of a single gene
>on a chromosome. These deformities can appear due to either (or both) of the
>parents being carriers of the genetic defect, or from a spontaneous mutation
>during embryonic development.
>What are called 'environmental factors' that can cause deformities include
>various drugs as well as infectious agents. In the 1960s, many pregnant
>women taking the anti-nausea drug thalidomide gave birth to infants with
>limb deformities. Anti-seizure drugs taken by people with epilepsy can also
>induce deformities. Certain vitamins when taken in excess can disrupt normal
>development of the fetus; others when deficient (such as folic acid) can
>cause deformities.
>CED
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>Genetics can cause a deformity. Sometimes they can be corrected
>surgically; sometimes we cannot correct a genetic disorder. Research is
>being constantly done to eliminate genetic disorders that cause
>deformity.
>
>---Glenn

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