2007-06-27 23:48:20 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ Other - Diseases
A person with down syndrome has a duplicate chromosome - chromosome 21. 95% of the time this happens by Nondisfunction, which is a faulty cell division that happens usually when the child is concieved, when a pair of number 21 chromosomes (either on the dad's side or the mother's side) fail to seperate.
2007-06-27 23:56:15 · answer #1 · answered by silent_deviant 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Down's Syndrome occurs when the sperm and egg first join. At the time, an extra chromosome splits off, causing Down's Syndrome. It can be either hereditary or by pure chance, though it is more likely to occur in older couples. People with Down's Syndrome are also more susceptible to other illnesses, such as Alzheimer's disease. I have a cousin in her 50's whose parents finally, after caring for her for about 40 years, had to place her in a nursing home because her Alzheimer's became so severe.
2007-06-28 10:30:01 · answer #2 · answered by cross-stitch kelly 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's a genetic defect, an extra chromosome.
2007-06-28 06:51:29 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You don't develop it, you are born with it. It is an additional chromosome, number 21 I think.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downs_syndrome
2007-06-28 06:53:39 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋