Born with 3 arms, 2 heads, and other genetic mutations

hotchillipepper

speaking of different molecule combinations.... we can become a billion of different kinds. we called this freak of nature, but its actually, genetic mutation, which is a change of the DNA sequence resulting in the creation of a new kind. This kind of mutation is bad, anyways, most mutations can be these bad.

good site to read

When Genes Go Bad: Mutations and Disease


DNA is constantly subject to mutations, accidental changes in its code. Mutations can lead to missing or malformed proteins, and that can lead to disease.

http://www.thetech.org/genetics/art04_bad.php

Doctors in China are debating whether to operate on a child born with three arms.

The boy cries with doctors and nurses touch either of his left arms. Doctors are trying to determine which of the arms is more developed before removing one of them.

The child was also born with only one kidney, which may cause him problems later in life.

http://www.kare11.com/news/national/national_article.aspx?storyid=126099

He also just have one kidney.

hotchillipepper

^ that is today's news..

these babies, i think were born few years ago....

faaip_de_oiad

these very mutations paved the way for the features that we find most prevalent in the human race in our present time. you win some, you lose some.

hotchillipepper

^that can be true, you like saying freak of nature vs. gifted child.

this kind of exteme mutation is not beneficial to that individual, so even they survive, they are not too appealing to opposite sex, so therefore their chance of marrying someone and produce their own genes is small, so, anyone who didn't have their offsprings are out of the gene pool, so they are the deadends.

Oppositely, if there are mutations that's beneficial to that individual, and if it gives a competitive edge- let us called it "gifted", that individual is appealing to opposite sex so his genes will be pass on, his generation would probably create a new standard of competition.

st.anger

those images looked photoshopped..

gekokujo

are extra limbs even genetic mutations?

hotchillipepper

sana nagkarun ng genetic mutation ang mga asians tulad ng mga sheeps na to.. lol!!


wrong pic, try it again..

Genetic mutation explains ‘beautiful buttocks’ in sheep

Scientists have pinpointed the genetic mutation that causes lambs to develop large and muscular rumps-a trait known as callipyge, from the Greek for 'beautiful buttocks.' The discovery ends a search that has lasted a decade and marks the beginning of an effort to explain how the mutation causes its dramatic effect.

hotchillipepper

this little mutant is mr little universe. ..

Gene mutation makes baby super strong

Somewhere in Germany is a baby Superman, born in Berlin with bulging arm and leg muscles. Not yet 5, he can hold seven-pound weights with arms extended, something many adults cannot do. He has muscles twice the size of other kids his age and half their body fat.


DNA testing showed why: The boy has a genetic mutation that boosts muscle growth.

The discovery, reported in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, represents the first documented human case of such a mutation.

http://www2.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-06/25/content_342496.htm

gekokujo

Something funny has been happening to frogs in the 1990s: their numbers have plummeted and they are more often found deformed. That much is not disputed. Nor is it argued that the recent declines among amphibians -- whose permeable skins make them more sensitive to ecological change -- may well be a harbinger of a more serious environmental problem. But scientists have been debating just why Kermit's kind is finding it less easy being green.

Explanations range from vanishing habitats, fungal infections, cannibalism and predation to the far more ominous. Some suggest that as the ozone hole widens, frog embryos are exposed to higher levels of ultraviolet radiation, leading to genetic mutations. Others blame pollution from pesticide runoff; among these culprits are chemicals called retinoids, which double as potent human teratogens. But recently a far less sinister cause has surfaced: parasites.

Indeed, two new papers in Science-- one by Stanley K. Sessions and his colleagues at Hartwick College and the other by Pieter Johnson, a recent graduate of Stanford University and his former colleagues at Stanford's Center for Conservation Biology -- demonstrate that flatworms called Ribeiroia are responsible for most of the observed limb deformities in a variety of frog species. The tiny trematodes burrow into the hindquarters of tadpoles, where they either physically or chemically scramble the cells that develop into legs. "It's about as close to using an egg beater on the limb bud cells as you can get," Sessions says. As a result, infected frogs sprout extra legs or no legs at all.

Parasites or Pollution?, http://www.sciam.com

...maybe those kids got sick while still in their mothers' wombs. is that an example of a "genetic" mutation?

Ischaramoochie

extra limbs (or heads for that matter) are most probably the results of an upset natural twinning process.

hotchillipepper

scroll down, same page
http://www2.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-06/25/content_342496.htm


A seven-month old baby with a genetic mutation that boosts muscle growth is seen in an undated black and white image released by the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday June 23, 2004. The discovery, reported in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, represents the first documented human case of such a mutation. The boy's mutant DNA segment was found to block production of a protein called myostatin that limits muscle growth. [AP]

Anonymouz

ack. i think i wont be having lunch today. freaky.

gekokujo

hotchilipepper, "gene" and "genetic" mean something heritable. as seen from your pic, cute sheep are a dime-a-dozen. and if i'm not mistaken many of super-baby's relatives are said to exhibit above-average strength. and here's another example of a genetic mutation displayed by a family that walks on all fours. is the same characteristic (heritability) true of extra appendages? as moochie and yours truly pointed-out, things that happen in the womb are the most likely explanation, not mutations carried in the parents' DNA.

hotchillipepper

maybe those kids got sick while still in their mothers' wombs. is that an example of a "genetic" mutation?

there are just examples of "dramatic" mutations, we do change all the time, from fertilization in every stages of our life, the changes is considered normal. Our offspring will change our DNA, becuase its been mixed with our other half.

our DNA had already been made during the fertilization, its a blue print of what we can become, when single ***** cell out of millions that's been ejaculated, one only will accept by the ovum, upon that union, its an early stage of processing our DNA, it will reproduce/replicate itself, and each cell in your body has the same copy of DNA, whether its your bone cells, hair cells even your mouth, have millions of cells.

in an early production of a cell, when it become a stem cell, it's a kind of cell or unspecialized cell, which means that cell can turn into anything, could be a bone, skin, eyes, etc, any part of your body, that's why it is possible now to produce part of our body once we know the genetic code of of how it's been sequenced.

thanks for your sincere question... not many would like to understand, they already closed minded of possibilities out there...

Ischaramoochie

i think that at this point it would be important to distinguish between genotypes and phenotypes.

gekokujo

hotchillipepper wrote:

our DNA had already been made during the fertilization, its a blue print of what we can become,

my point exactly: our DNA - and thus all the genetic traits we receive from our parents - are set from the word "go". twinning processes disrupted by disease or environmental poisons happen in the womb, which happens after fertilization. so how can that be called "genetic" or something eggs get at fertilization?

just proving we can always disagree amicably, dude.

Anonymouz

those 2 headed babies, is that real? how can it happen? is the other head alive? did the baby live long?

hotchillipepper

my point exactly: our DNA - and thus all the genetic traits we receive from our parents - are set from the word "go". twinning processes disrupted by disease or environmental poisons happen in the womb, which happens after fertilization. so how can that be called "genetic" or something eggs get at fertilization?

could be twinning process, you can say that, or just different sequence/combinations, we can be billions of combination of what we can become. I always go back to basic just to imagine all possibilities, combinations of atoms, molecules, elements to make an organic/non organic,then put them in sequence, what is the probability of one combination/sequence that you can be duplicated?

as mentioned, each cell has a copy of DNA, it happened shortly just within few hours after the fertilization- then after replicating itself for 2-3 days up to 300 cells, that's called a stem cell in that stage, then after 4-5 days, blue print is completed, it become blastocyst embryo, in this stage, they even know the gender of that embryo, blastocyst had become one solid cell again, the division of cells begin, and they are instructed to know what kind of cell they will become, what kind of parts they developed into. They survived outside the womb with the right temperature up to 7 days. After that it must be planted to female's womb, just like a bacteria, its become a parasite.

That's why crossbreedings in animals are successful becuase of the new tech in artificial insemmination.

all animals/plants have the same process of fertilization, the length of gestation varies of course.

---

I just add an example common miscpnception about mutation.

say if you go to the gym and lift weights using just one left hand, your DNA won't change, you are changing your body, by stimulating/producing more cells which are muscle cells in your left arms, and that is not genetic mutation.

if DNA can be changed in our life time, nalagot na, di mahirap mahuli ang mga criminals niyan, dahil magmutant na lang sila if they can, e di' natin ma identify ang unique na DNA nila dahil paiba iba..

lol...rumour lang, masyadon tayong serious.

anonymous, right click on the pics, it will lead u the sites....

gekokujo

hotchillipepper wrote:

could be twinning process, you can say that, or just different sequence/combinations, we can be billions of combination of what we can become.

that’s not good enough. a disease or environmental poison affecting the twinning process is a specific cause. writing-off extra limbs to “billions of combination of what we can become” is no better than saying “goddidit”.

this article is an overview of the current state of knowledge describing the extent to which human development from fertilization to birth is controlled by genetic factors, including a comprehensive list of congenital disorders correlated with mutations affecting specific developmental genes (i.e. the famous Sonic hedgehog gene SHH). the growth of extra limbs is credited to none of these genes, but of the twinning process, the article does say

MONOZYGOTIC TWINS

MZ twins are genetically identical, although occasionally they can be discordant for structural birth defects that may be linked to the twinning process itself – especially those anomalies affecting midline structures. There is probably a two- to three-fold increased risk of congenital anomalies in MZ twins, i.e. 5–10% of MZ twins overall. Discordance for single-gene traits or chromosome abnormalities may occur because of a post-zygotic somatic mutation or non-disjunction, respectively. One example of the latter is the rare occurrence of MZ twins of different sex – one 46,XY and the other 45,X.

Developmental genetics, http://www.fleshandbones.com

”post-zygotic somatic mutation” indicating a mutation that arises after fertilization, as opposed to a “genetic mutation” inherited from a parent.

this other article specifically describes congenital disorders affecting limbs. again, the list does not include extra or duplicate limbs. a particularly-relevant portion reads

Congenital limb anomalies: linking malformations to molecules

Progress in the molecular genetics of limb development has started to shed light on the genetic basis of naturally occurring limb malformations. The etiology of limb defects is complex, and includes mutations, environmental factors, chromosomal abnormalities and intrauterine accidents such as amniotic bands, which can amputate the limb by constriction (Ferretti and Tickle 1997). This discussion will be restricted to malformations resulting from mutations in developmental control genes. Malformation of the limbs occurs frequently, and the spectrum of such defects is large (Figs. 3, 4). Limb abnormalities are broadly divisible into three categories, reduction defects, duplication defects and dysplasias (Larsen 1997)…

Duplication defects: Duplication of proximal elements in the limb is extremely rare, and even experimental manipulations of the embryo rarely result in extra proximal elements (Wolpert and Hornbruch 1987) In contrast, duplication of the digits, or polydactyly, is quite a common duplication defect (Figs. 3A,B, 4).

Molecular control of vertebrate limb development, evolution and congenital malformations, http://www.zoo.ufl.edu

amphibians always regenerate amputated limbs fingers first instead of the other way around (rule of distal transformation). which is probably related to why extra or supernumerary limbs (as opposed to supernumerary digits) are so rare among higher vertebrates like humans. which leads to your given example

Most cases of multiple limbs result from conjoined twins forming in development. One child does not survive and becomes essentially absorbed into the other, said Dr. Russell Jennings at the Children's Hospital in Boston.

In those cases, the extra limb is not connected to the baby's brain and the decision to amputate is straightforward. The cause of Jie-jie's extra arm seems unclear.

According to the evidence so far, Dr. Steven Stylianos of Miami Children's Hospital said he suspects that the extra limb most likely came about in the conjoined twin process. Whatever the explanation, Dr. Jorge Lazzareff said he has confidence in the Shanghai doctors' skills. In the last four years, he has traveled to China several times to perform surgery on orphans with birth defects.

Three-Armed Baby: How Does It Happen?, http://abcnews.go.com

unless someone can cite a conclusive example of a human with a third arm that is not the result of having an underdeveloped (parasitic) conjoined twin, speculation about genetic causes remains just that: speculation.

sorry if I sound so serious, I can't help it, I just can't trust these things to the conventional wisdom.

hotchillipepper

^^^

I'm with you, there could be many causes of extra limbs, extra legs, etc., and sometimes, a baby could have a perfect healthy genes, and environment/diseases could cause their abnormal development, not genetic mutation, however, mutation can introduce big changes into an animal's body shape and still generate a living animal. and there are genetic evidence explaining how small mutations can cause big changes in an organism's body, genetic change can successfully lead to a whole new species, those abnormalities might not be a genetic mutation, but still the cause is inconclusive.

check this type of DNA sequence- homeobox...

A particular subgroup of homeobox genes are the Hox genes, which are found in a special gene cluster, the Hox cluster (also called Hox complex). Hox genes function in patterning the body axis. Thus, by providing the identity of particular body regions, Hox genes determine where limbs and other body segments will grow in a developing fetus or larva. Mutations in any one of these genes can lead to the growth of extra, typically non-functional body parts in invertebrates, for example aristapaedia complex in Drosophila, which results in a leg growing from the head in place of an antenna and is due to a defect in a single gene (this mutation is also known as Antennapedia). Mutation in vertebrate Hox genes usually results in spontaneous abortion.

Ischaramoochie pointed out we have to distinguish between genotypes and phenotypes, genes are known to control developmental processes by regulating other genes.

...Mutations to homeobox genes can produce easily visible phenotypic changes. Two examples of homeobox mutations in the above-mentioned fruit fly are legs where the antennae should be, and a second pair of wings. Duplication of homeobox genes can produce new body segments, and such duplications are likely to have been important in the evolution of segmented animals.

In a loose analogy to computing, one can think of a homeobox gene like a call to a subroutine. It switches on the production of a whole subsystem, the code for which must already be present elsewhere in the DNA.

http://www.answers.com/homeobox?gwp=11&ver=1.0.4.128&method=3

hotchillipepper

Synpolydactyly (SPD) is a genetic disorder that results from mutations in one of the HOX genes. The phenotypes are shown in the pictures below, which usually involves developmental disorders in the fingers and toes resulting in fusion and malformation.

http://hsc.usf.edu/nocms/medicine/biochemistry/Courses/Graduate/bch6627/pg_diseases.html
click here

more of hox genes...



http://www.molbio.princeton.edu/courses/mb427/2001/projects/03/development.html