Piebald...

[rattekonigin]

...People!
This is a pic I scanned from my developmental bio text...it shows piebaldism in humans as compared to a piebald mouse...However, in humans, it says, the same gene that causes this conditions also causes anemia, sterility, defective development of gut neurons and the ear...
I just thought this was so neat, I had no idea that humans could have piebaldism as well...you learn something new everyday!

http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/500/154babymouse.jpg

[katev17]

Haha, it just looks like someone whacked one of those chalk brush erasers on him... how odd! Thanks for sharing :D

Kate

[RachelS.]

It looks fake to me. Like they took it into paint and painted some lighter skin tone color on it to make it look like the hamster. Weird...

[Edwin]

Is michael jackson a piebald? lol

That's very curious information, I wonder how man piebald humans there are.

[katev17]

Aww... Michael Jackson scares me to various levels... so freaky.

[Lisa]

I know a couple people that have piebald skin. on them it's barely noticable.

[Pixie]

LOL Edwin, I was thinking the same thing!!! I can't remember the name of Micheal Jackson's supposed skin condition but I would guess it would be the equivalent of piebaldism. Too funny...

[brig]

Since it's genetic, I guess piebald-ism is possible in most species. I wonder if it's just the reverse of having birthmarks or other dark patches, which is quite common in humans?

[V.aw]

hahahahaha Edwin. Micheal Jackson..

Did you see that email with the comparison of MJ over the years?
70's young black singer, 80's maturing black singer, 90's white woman, 2000's yoda?
heheheh

[Gorelith]

Originally posted by rattekonigin
...it says, the same gene that causes this conditions also causes anemia, sterility, defective development of gut neurons and the ear...
http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/500/154babymouse.jpg
It's good to see the negative effects of what some breeders do to their animals. I've seen lots of documentation on bad alleles that pair with albino genes as well. Makes you wonder what other negative effects go along with say clown or spider morphs, or caramel albino, cuase in some morphs you're talking about mixing 2 genes that are known to have bad side effects, and how this happens to so many animals for profit. Almost like animal abuse isn't it?
Good topic.

[andrea]

i dont know in animals but in humans it is a sign of a bigger disease. and there are, like in most conditions, mild to extreme cases. if it is that bad in animals as well, i dont understand why you would want to BREED a disease, as like, some sort of bonus. if anyone is interested i THINK it is called Waardenburg syndrome, spelling may be off a little.

[rattekonigin]

Most mutant alleles have some kind of "side-effects" associated with them, even though we can't necessarily see these effects in our animals...like albinism, in humans it's a rather debilitating disorder and causes all kinds of eye and skin problems...but most domesticated animals (those kept as pets, at least) are bred specifically to exhibit albinism...reminds me of that other thread about the life span of albino BP's...someone should really do a study to quantify the effects of these kinds of morphs, it'd be interesting to see.

[Lisa]

Originally posted by Gorelith
It's good to see the negative effects of what some breeders do to their animals. I've seen lots of documentation on bad alleles that pair with albino genes as well. Makes you wonder what other negative effects go along with say clown or spider morphs, or caramel albino, cuase in some morphs you're talking about mixing 2 genes that are known to have bad side effects, and how this happens to so many animals for profit. Almost like animal abuse isn't it?
Good topic.


And to think we pay extra for these defective genes.

[Corey Woods]

Since some ball python mutations were mentioned above I'd like to see one person mention a know side effect that is associated with any of the ball python mutations. To the best of my knowledge there are none. Maybe some research should be done before you assume something that is not true.

Corey

[rattekonigin]

Well, I can tell you at least one side effect of albinism in any animal (including BP's)...the main one being an increased physiological sensitivity to ultra-violet radiation. The lack of melanin affords the animal little protection from the sun, protection that the wild-type would have. Also, albinos have bad eyesight because their bodies can't even produce the black pigment that coats the inside of the eye (this pigment is there to absorb any stray photons of light so that they don't bounce around inside the eye and screw up vision), that's why albinos have pink eyes and that's why pupils are black in normally pigmented individuals...Not to mention the huge increase in vulnerability to predation caused by albinism in wild animals...Any mutation has some side effect, and most mutations are deliterious...that's just the nature of things...So, it's not an assumption, it's a fact...check out any text book or journal on genetics, evolution, etc...

I brought up albino BP's because there was another thread a while back that asked if albino BP's had shorter life spans than wild-type individuals...I think it was a good question (even though, if I recall correctly, the consensus was that they do live as long as normals), and I merely stated that it would be interesting to see the side effects of "morph" mutations quantified/qualified...It's productive to ask questions like these, questions are the basis for the advancement of knowledge...

I, personally, don't think that breeding these mutations into animals constitutes abuse, because under domestic conditions most of these side effects don't cause any real damage, at least none that we can see outright...I mean, whether an albino BP can see well or not doesn't really affect it when it's kept in a rubbermaid rack with food provided weekly. In those conditions it will fare just as well as a normal BP...in the wild it would be another story.
There might be some physiological detriments caused by these "morphs" but until someone really investigates it, we'll never know...

My intention with posting this picture was just to show everyone how much we have in common with animals, and I thought it was an interesting little "factule" (I just made that word up :D)

There's really no need to get defensive/hostile...

[Edwin]

I am glad I am not a piebald.

[Them and Us]

a kid i know, Rob, is piebald. has a few patches on his arms and one on his hair so right in front of his head full of black hair is a patch of snowy white hair. he has tried to dye his hair and won't wear shorts and whatever. hes sees fine ha.

[andrea]

there are quite a few cases i've seen where someone has white patches in their hair, a little boy in my classes has one large one near the front. a man my husband is friends with has two of them. but i dont think that is piebaldism, or is a very mild case of it. i think, and i could be wrong, that the rest has to be there for piebald. the patches are pretty much in the same place on every picture i have seen, person or animal, the chest/abdomine area and the front of the hair. if anyone knows if these other patches of white are piebald or something else, just some stray lack of pigment, i'd be interested to know.

[rattekonigin]

This picture is of a case that has been linked to a specific mutation in the "Kit" gene (I think that was the name, I don't have the book with me right now)...both the mouse and the baby have that same mutation, hence the similarity in the pattern of the marks...I'm not sure what contributes to people having small/medium patches in "random" places on their bodies, but I do believe that it's a separate phenomenon. I don't think people in that case have any problems with the side effects associated with the Kit gene mutation...ie. gut/ear malformations, sterility, etc...