by windy_sydney

Question posed by Ex Tants: Exactly how does Cystic Fibrosis provide resistance for TB?
From what I’ve gathered, Cystic Fibrosis causes a lot of mucus in the lungs, which can trap some bacterial infections. Could the mucus also trap the Tuberculosis cells, or is there another reason for the resistance? Also, what causes the excess mucus from CF? Does it have something to do with the mutated chlorine protein pump?
I’m sorry TweetyBird, but you obviously don’t know enough about this. I know CF provides enough resistance to allow people to overcome Tuberculosis, because it follows with the 1600′s outbreak of TB. Keeping natural selection in mind, people began to inherit mutated CF genes that would allow them to escape TB and reproduce before Cystic Fibrosis ended up taking their lives.
TB is an airborne disease and infects lung tissue, something it would be incapable of doing if CF has caused a layer of thick, sticky mucus said tissue. There is also an enzyme, arylsulphatase B, which TB needs to create its cell membrane, a nutrient which CF prevents TB from accessing. I want to know how CF prevents TB from getting hold of this protein.

Selected answer:

Answer by TweetyBird
It’s not CF that provides resistance, it’s the gene for CF. And the gene doesn’t provide resistance, it provides SOME resistance. It’s not the first gene to provide some resistance to a disease. Sickle cell anemia is an example of such a disease that persists with high incidence in Africans, since having one copy of the gene protects against malaria. Exactly how the CF gene does this isn’t precisely known but it’s thought that people with the CF gene don’t produce a certain nutrient that TB bacteria need.

If you know better then please let us know below.

Technorati Tags: cystic, Exactly, fibrosis, provide, resistance

by k-ideas

A question from ni_345: Biology question related to Genetics?
Charles and his first wife, have a child with CF (Cystic fibrosis), and now he marries to his current Wife, Elaine. In Elaine’s family.Elaine has her own father and mom and also a brother. Her brother has CF.

Question: what is the probability that their child (Charles and Elaine’s ) is CF?

Selected answer:

Answer by I Could Care Less
I will try my best to help you answer this question. I don’t know how accurate my response is, so I suggest you get a second opinion. But, I will try to give you some insight on this based on what I DO know…

If Charles and his first wife gave birth to a child with cystic fibrosis, one can conclude that both Charles and his wife are heterozygotes (Cc), and thus each contributed the recessive allele for cystic fibrosis to their offspring. Secondly, if Elaine’s brother has cystic fibrosis, we can conclude that Elaine and her brother are also the products of mating between two heterozygotes (Cc x Cc). Hence, Elaine’s brother inherited the recessive allele for cystic fibrosis. The resulting genotypes of this mating are as follows:

25% homozygous dominant (CC)
50% heterozygotes (Cc)
25% homozygous recessive (cc)

However, because Elaine does not have the disorder (which is what I’m assuming based on the information given), from these genotypes, it is impossible to know for certain whether she is homozygous dominant (CC) or heterozygous (Cc). Both of these genotypes would indicate that Elaine does not have the disorder.

If Elaine is homozygous dominant and mates with Charles, who is heterozygous (CC x Cc):

50% of the offspring will be homozygous dominant (CC), and 50% of the offspring will be heterozygous (Cc). Hence, there is no chance of producing an offspring with cystic fibrosis.

However, if Elaine is heterozygous, and mates with Charles (Cc x Cc):

25% of the offspring will be homozygous dominant (CC)
50% of the offspring will be heterozygous (Cc)
25% of the offspring will be homozygous recessive, and thus will have cystic fibrosis.

Hence, there is a 25% chance of producing an offspring with cystic fibrosis if Elaine is heterozygous.

I hope this helps.

Provide your own answer to this question below!

Technorati Tags: Biology, GENETICS, question, related

by Tanya Dawn

A question from small_darris: What is the genetic cause of Cystic Fibrosis?

The No 1 answer:

Answer by M.L.J
Every year, 1,000 children with cystic fibrosis (CF) are born in the United States. One in 3,000 Caucasian babies have the disorder, making CF one of the most common lethal genetic diseases in Caucasians. Overall, there are 30,000 Americans with CF, and an estimated 8 million people carry one copy of the defective gene that causes the disease. These carriers do not have symptoms of CF, because a person must inherit two defective gene copies-one from each parent-to develop the disease. However, each child of two CF carriers has a one in four chance of being born with CF. Genetic testing is now available to identify couples at risk for having children with CF.

Improved therapy has transformed CF from a disease characterized by death in early childhood to a chronic illness, with most patients living to adulthood.

http://www.healingwell.com/library/cysticfibrosis/info1.asp

Whether you agree or disagree, why not leave your own thoughts below.

Technorati Tags: cause, cystic, fibrosis, genetic

A question asked by MrSkeptiK: Very hard genetics question?
What are the chances of the following couple producing a child with the autosomal genetic defect cystic fibrosis. Mark and his old wife, Janet, have a child with cystic fibrosis. His new wife, Ellen, had a brother with cystic fibrosis. Mark and Ellen, neither having cystic fibrosis, have a child. What is the chance that their child will have it?

The No 1 answer:

Answer by I speak perfect Englesh
it’s over 5000!

If you know better then please let us know below.

Technorati Tags: GENETICS, hard, question, Very

A question from rj: what if your daughter has a cystic fibrosis and she is suffering and the doctor said that ?
what if your daughter has a cystic fibrosis and she is suffering and the doctor said that she will die in a little time, it is right to continue the treatment until the end???remember that the parents are rich.?
what if your daughter has a cystic fibrosis and she is suffering and the doctor said that she will die in a little time, it is right to continue the treatment until the end???remember that the parents are rich. And why??

Most detailed answer:

Answer by Paramedic Girl
Of course the treatments should be continued. That should be a given.

Provide your own answer to this question below!

Technorati Tags: cystic, daughter, doctor, fibrosis, said, suffering

A question from Drink deeply and dream: What causes differences in the severity of Cystic Fibrosis?
I have identical twin girls (they’re 16) who have Cystic Fibrosis, they have always been in the same environment, but they seem to have two different severity levels of Cystic Fibrosis, one of my twins is sick very often and has had to spend numerous amounts of time in hospital, has much lower lung function, needs a feeding tube, and will need a lung transplant eventually, my other daughter does not get sick and get infections that much and has always been a lot stronger. What actually causes the differences since they are identical twins?

Selected answer:

Answer by Dixie
that’s the $ 64,000 question. This is a good question and it’s one we really don’t know the answer to yet.
It does give an example of how your genotype doesn’t always predict your phenotype.
My CF patients tell me frequently that they have the worst mutation, but their lung function is excellent and they are as healthy as I am.
One theory is that there are modifier genes that we just don’t know much about at this point, or how to turn them on or off. If we knew how to do that, we would have a cure for cancer too. It is perhaps why one twin has more symptoms than the other.

How about adding your own answer to the comments below!

Technorati Tags: causes, cystic, differences, fibrosis, severity

A question from Aniya’s Mommy: Cystic Fibrosis Carrier?
I am 10 weeks pregnant. I got a call from my gynecologist this morning that my lab results showed that I am a carrier for Cystic Fibrosis. They wanted my boyfriend to come in for some blood tests of his own. They said that If he is a carrier that our baby has a 25% chance of having this disease, but if he wasn’t a carrier than they wasn’t going to worry about it. He went this morning and they took blood. We should have the results back by the end of next week. My question is has anyone went through this., I can’t help but worry and i know that’s not good for me or the baby. I so want my baby to be healthy

Best answer:

Answer by Psychogirlfrog
Hey there,

I just found out that I am pregnant a few days ago so I don’t have anything to offer you about the Cystic Fibrosis.

I just wanted to offer my support and to tell you to hang in there.

HUGS!

If you know better then please let us know below.

Technorati Tags: Carrier, cystic, fibrosis

by Tanya Dawn

A question from Lulu: Can radiation cause diseases like cystic fibrosis?
I read that cystic fibrosis is caused by a mutation of the CFTR gene, so even though the condition is inherited is it possible that the environment plays a role in developing CF? For example, would the presence of mutagens such as UV radiation affect the frequency of CFTR mutations in a population? You can probably tell I’m not really a biologist, so please explain as though you were explaining to a child

Most detailed answer:

Answer by Ann!
It is unlikely, yet possible for UV radiation to cause genetic diseases like cystic fibrosis. Here’s how it works: in order to have a recessive genetic disease like cystic fibrosis, you need 2 bad copies of the gene (one from mom, one from dad). In order to be passed on, mutations must be present in germ cells (sperm and eggs). These cells are generally protected from most environmental mutagens like UV light, but deeper penetrating radiation, or chemical carcinogens could cause mutation in the germ cells. Even if that did happen, most mutations do not result in disease – in fact, the protein that those genes code usually doesn’t even change. Environmental mutagens are more likely to cause disease in the people directly exposed to them than their children.

Whether you agree or disagree, why not leave your own thoughts below.

Technorati Tags: cause, cystic, Diseases, fibrosis, like, radiation

Question by Sekkennight: I want to become an egg donor, but I am a carrier of the Cystic Fibrosis gene will that make it so I can’t?
I want to become an egg donor, but I am a carrier of the Cystic Fibrosis gene will that make it so I can’t be an egg donor? No one in my family has ever had it, so I was just wondering if just being a carrier of the gene would make it so I could not.

If you answer this please KNOW the answer, don’t just guess.

The best answer:

Answer by pocabarbie
YES!!!!!!!!!!!!! ANY THING LIKE THAT THAT IS GENETIC IS A CAUSE FOR CONCERN THEY WILL PROBABLY SAY NO DUE TO THE HIGH RISK.

If you know better then please let us know below.

Technorati Tags: become, cant, Carrier, cystic, donor, fibrosis, gene, want

by fakelvis

A question from Nick P: what were the past Treatments for Cystic Fibrosis? what are the Disorders Origins?

need some answers fast because a friend has it and wants to kno

No 1 answer:

Answer by Bowllynn
cff.org

Provide your own answer to this question below!

Technorati Tags: cystic, Disorders, fibrosis, Origins, past, Treatments, were