Chromosome X&Y (23) - Colour Blindness

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How do we distinguish light from dark and one colour from another?

The answer lies in the tiny light-sensitive cells of our retinas -- the rods and cones. We have three different types of cones which respond to blue, green and red light, and faults with any of these cone cells can lead to different kinds of colour blindness.

The gene responsible for colour blindness is found on the X chromosome which, as Dr Simon Watt explains, is the reason that so many more men are colour blind than women.

With thanks to BBSRC: http://bbsrc.ac.uk/

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