atypical sex chromosome patterns

Question 1

what are the 2 atypical sex chromosome patterns

Answer 1

1. klinfelter syndrome
2. turner syndrome

Question 2

description of klinefelters syndrome

Answer 2

• affects 1 in 600 males
• biologically male
• chromosome structure of XXY
• 2/3 of people who have it doe not know

Question 3

what are the physical characteristic of klinefelter syndrome

Answer 3

• reduced body hair
• breast development at puberty
• softening of body contours
• long gangly limbs
• underdeveloped genitals
• more susceptible to breast cancer

Question 4

psychological characteristic of klinefelters syndrome

Answer 4

• poorly developed language skills
• poor reading ability
• passive and shy
• lack interest in sexual activity
• problems with memory an problem solving

Question 5

description of turners syndrome

Answer 5

• 1 in 5000 females
• absense of an X chromosome
• X0
• have 45 chromosomes

Question 6

physical characteristic of turner syndrome

Answer 6

• do not have a menstrual cycle
• infertile as no ovaries
• do not develop breast at puberty
• low set ears
• webbed neck
• high hip to waist ratio
• physically immature

Question 7

psychological characteristics

Answer 7

• higher than average reading ability
• performance on spatial, visual memory and mathematical task is lower than average
• socially immature
• difficulty fitting in

Question 8

strengths of research into atypical sex chromosome syndrome

Answer 8

1. contribution to nature - nurture debate
   - by comparing with chromosome typical individual if becomes possible to see psychological and behaviour differences
   - logical to infer that differences have a biological basis due to abnormal chromosomal structure
2. real world application
   - continued research will lead to earlier and more accurate diagnosis
   - Australian study of 87 individuals with klinefelter syndrome showed that those who had been identified and treated form a very young age experienced benefits in managing their syndrome

Question 9

limitation of research into atypical sex chromosome syndrome

Answer 9

1. there may be a sampling issue
   - only people with the most server symptoms are identified so the picture of typical symptoms may be distorted
   - Boada et al (2009) report that studies form birth produce a more accurate picture of the characteristic