Essay Inquiry about Disease Hypothesis There is an unforseen epidemic spreading.

Question

Essay Inquiry about Disease Hypothesis

There is an unforseen epidemic spreading. This disease is characterized by an increase of birth defects early in development affecting a wide range of species from fruit flies,poultry,primates etc.... the illness may exhibit different mechanisms of disease in different species. The early stages of the outbreak harbers little solid research to direct an investigation but some early testing indicates the presence of a new virus in infected patients. Government agencies have inquired you to come up with several hypotheses about the cause of this disease.

Develop exactly 3 hypotheses. For each hypothesis you must explain the gene or genes affected as specifically as possible and should also explain the involvement of the virus and any cell types that are particularly important. Make these hypotheses logical, to the point, and extremely different from each other to give researchers worldwide as many possibilities to investigate as possible. Each hypothesis should be 2 (max 3) sentences in length.

Each Hypothesis must:
1.) Present a logical and distinct explanation of the unique mutation
2.) Explain the role of the virus
3.) Explain the distinct effect on the genes of the infected species
4.) Contain a very different mechanism compared to the other two hypotheses

Explanation / Answer

#1: If the birth defects are similar to the defects found in nondisjunction patients, than the affected genes are genes associated with the aging of sex chromosomes.The virus causes hyper-rapid aging of the sex chromosomes, causing nondisjunction to occur.

#2: If the birth defects are similar to the defects found in cystic fibrosis patients, than the affected genes are the somatic genes associated with Cystic Fibrosis, exhibited in 1/4 parents. The virus causes increased expression of these genes during mating.

#3: If the birth defects are similar to the defects found in Phenylketonuria (PKU) patients, than the affected genes are somatic genes associated with the metabolic processes of the parents. The virus causes increased expression of these genes during mating.

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