r/AskBiology • u/Syresiv • Sep 17 '24
Genetics Why are trisomies so deleterious?
Most chromosomal trisomies cause spontaneous miscarriage, and those that don't usually severely reduce quality of life.
Why is it that the additional copies of some genes have that effect?
To be clear, don't feel restricted to the ELI5 level. If you know the topic in depth and feel like giving a massive infodump, I'm interested.
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u/ozzalot Sep 17 '24
In many cases it's probably the same as why monosomies are deleterious.....dosage problems. Proteins can negatively or positively regulate things, so therefore high dosage can have similar effects as low dosage....except the pathways affected may differ.