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Tay-Sachs disease is a hereditary illness. The body does not make a molecule that is required to break down fatty substances in the body, called gangliosides. The gangliosides collect in the nervous tissue, resulting in damage to the brain and nerves.

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What are other names for tay sachs disease?

Tay-Sachs disease is abbreviated to TSD and is also known as GM2 gangliosidosis or Hexosaminidase A deficiency.


What does the gene that cause tay sachs normally do?

The gene that causes Tay-Sachs disease normally provides instructions for making an enzyme called hexosaminidase A. This enzyme helps break down a fatty substance called GM2 ganglioside. Mutations in this gene lead to a deficiency in hexosaminidase A, causing the buildup of GM2 ganglioside in cells, which leads to the symptoms of Tay-Sachs disease.


Can you get tay sachs disease as an adult?

No, Tay-Sachs disease typically presents in infancy or early childhood. It is a rare genetic disorder that results in the destruction of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Adults who carry the gene mutation for Tay-Sachs disease do not develop symptoms of the disease themselves, but may pass the gene on to their children.


A person can be tested for the allele that causes Tay-Sachs disease because the what of that allele is different from that of the normal allele?

The DNA sequence of the allele that causes Tay-Sachs disease is different from that of the normal allele. This difference in the DNA sequence allows for specific genetic tests to be conducted to identify the presence of the Tay-Sachs disease allele in individuals.


What part of the cell is defective in pompe's disease and Tay-Sachs disease?

In Pompe's disease, the defect lies in the lysosomal enzyme alpha-glucosidase, which leads to the accumulation of glycogen in lysosomes. In Tay-Sachs disease, the defect is in the enzyme hexosaminidase A, which leads to the accumulation of GM2 gangliosides in lysosomes.

Related Questions

Tay-Sachs disease is a human?

Tay-Sachs disease is a human genetic disorder.


What effect does Tay Sachs disease have on the body?

what effect does Tay-sachs disease have on the body?


What system or part of the body does tay sachs disease affect?

what effect does Tay-sachs disease have on the body?


Does Tay-Sachs disease have single cells or multiple alleles?

Multiple mutations are responsible for Tay Sachs Disease. For example, Tay Sachs in the french Canadian population may be due to a different mutation then people of eastern European Jewish descent with Tay Sachs. any mutation that causes the absence of the enzyme Hexosamindase (Hex-A) is a mutation that can cause a Tay Sachs genotype/phenotype within an individual


Can a person with the Tay-Sachs disease live a healthy life?

A person with tay sachs can live a healthy life but still battles the many limitations of Tay sachs disease. Depending on the type of tay sachs, Classic, Juvenile onset, and Late Onset depends how healthy a life a person with tay sachs disease.


How often does Tay-Sachs disease occur in the population?

About 16 cases of Tay-Sachs disease are diagnosed each year.


What are other names for tay sachs disease?

Tay-Sachs disease is abbreviated to TSD and is also known as GM2 gangliosidosis or Hexosaminidase A deficiency.


Is tay-sachs a sex-linked disease?

There is no evidence that shows that tay-sachs is a sex-linked trait.


Is tay sachs disease sex-linked?

There is no evidence that shows that tay-sachs is a sex-linked trait.


Who discovered the tay sachs disease?

''Tay-Sachs'' was named after Warren Tay, an ophthalmologist who discovered the occurring red spot in the retina in 1881, and Bernard Sachs, who described the cellular changes related to this disease in 1887.


How is Tay Sachs Disease inherited?

A mutation of the HEX A gene of chromosome 15 causes Tay-Sachs disease. As a result, the protein hexosaminidase A is not formed properly and GM2 ganglioside, the lipid normally broken down by hexosaminidase A, accumulates to toxic levels (especially in the brain).


How does Tay-sachs disease differ from an infectious disease such as pneumonia?

Tay-sachs disease differs from an infectious disease because it is a hereditary disease, so it can only be passed from parents to their offspring.