31.3: Aneuploidy

Aneuploidy

Scientists call an individual with the appropriate number of chromosomes for their species euploid. In humans, euploidy corresponds to 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex chromosomes. An individual with an error in chromosome number is described as aneuploid, a term that includes monosomy (losing one chromosome) or trisomy (gaining an extraneous chromosome). Monosomic human zygotes missing any one copy of an autosome invariably fail to develop to birth because they lack essential genes. This underscores the importance of “gene dosage” in humans. Most autosomal trisomies also fail to develop to birth; however, duplications of some smaller chromosomes (13, 15, 18, 21, or 22) can result in offspring that survive for several weeks to many years. Trisomic individuals suffer from a different type of genetic imbalance: an excess in gene dose. Individuals with an extra chromosome may synthesize an abundance of the gene products, which that chromosome encodes. This extra dose (150 percent) of specific genes can lead to a number of functional challenges and often precludes development. The most common trisomy among viable births is that of chromosome 21, which corresponds to Down Syndrome. Short stature and stunted digits, facial distinctions that include a broad skull and large tongue, and significant developmental delays characterize individuals with this inherited disorder. We can correlate the incidence of Down syndrome with maternal age. Older people are more likely to become pregnant with fetuses carrying the trisomy 21 genotype (Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\)).

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): The incidence of having a fetus with trisomy 21 increases dramatically with maternal age.

 

Polyploidy

We call an individual with more than the correct number of chromosome sets (two for diploid species) polyploid. For instance, fertilizing an abnormal diploid egg with a normal haploid sperm would yield a triploid zygote. Polyploid animals are extremely rare, with only a few examples among the flatworms, crustaceans, amphibians, fish, and lizards. Polyploid animals are sterile because meiosis cannot proceed normally and instead produces mostly aneuploid daughter cells that cannot yield viable zygotes. Rarely, polyploid animals can reproduce asexually by haplodiploidy, in which an unfertilized egg divides mitotically to produce offspring. In contrast, polyploidy is very common in the plant kingdom, and polyploid plants tend to be larger and more robust than euploids of their species (Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\)).

Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): As with many polyploid plants, this triploid orange daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) is particularly large and robust, and grows flowers with triple the number of petals of its diploid counterparts. (credit: Steve Karg)

Sex Chromosome Nondisjunction in Humans

Humans display dramatic deleterious effects with autosomal trisomies and monosomies. Therefore, it may seem counterintuitive that human females and males can function normally, despite carrying different numbers of the X chromosome. Rather than a gain or loss of autosomes, variations in the number of sex chromosomes occur with relatively mild effects. In part, this happens because of the molecular process X inactivation. Early in development, when female mammalian embryos consist of just a few thousand cells (relative to trillions in the newborn), one X chromosome in each cell inactivates by tightly condensing into a quiescent (dormant) structure, or a Barr body. The chance that an X chromosome (maternally or paternally derived) inactivates in each cell is random, but once this occurs, all cells derived from that one will have the same inactive X chromosome or Barr body. By this process, females compensate for their double genetic dose of X chromosome. In so-called “tortoiseshell” cats, we observe embryonic X inactivation as color variegation (Figure \(\PageIndex{3}\)). Females that are heterozygous for an X-linked coat color gene will express one of two different coat colors over different regions of their body, corresponding to whichever X chromosome inactivates in that region's embryonic cell progenitor.

Figure \(\PageIndex{3}\): In cats, the gene for coat color is located on the X chromosome. In female cats' embryonic development, one of the two X chromosomes randomly inactivates in each cell, resulting in a tortoiseshell pattern if the cat has two different alleles for coat color. Male cats, having only one X chromosome, never exhibit a tortoiseshell coat color. (credit: Michael Bodega)

An individual carrying an abnormal number of X chromosomes will inactivate all but one X chromosome in each of her cells. However, even inactivated X chromosomes continue to express a few genes, and X chromosomes must reactivate for the proper maturation of female ovaries. As a result, X-chromosomal abnormalities typically occur with mild intellectual and physical disorders or disabilities, as well as sterility. If the X chromosome is absent altogether, the individual will not develop in utero.

Scientists have identified and characterized several errors in sex chromosome number. Individuals with three X chromosomes, triplo-X, are phenotypically female but express developmental delays and reduced fertility. The XXY genotype, corresponding to one type of Klinefelter syndrome, corresponds to phenotypically male individuals with small testes, enlarged breasts, and reduced body hair. More complex types of Klinefelter syndrome exist in which the individual has as many as five X chromosomes. In all types, every X chromosome except one undergoes inactivation to compensate for the excess genetic dosage. We see this as several Barr bodies in each cell nucleus. Turner syndrome, characterized as an X0 genotype (i.e., only a single sex chromosome), corresponds to a phenotypically female individual with short stature, webbed skin in the neck region, hearing and cardiac impairments, and sterility.