Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry 6th Edition

Published by W.H. Freeman
ISBN 10: 1-42923-414-8
ISBN 13: 978-1-42923-414-6

Chapter 12 - Biosignaling - Problems - Page 499: 18

Answer

In children who develops multiple tumors in both eyes, every retinal cell had a defective copy of the $Rb$ gene at birth. Early in the child's life, several cells independently underwent a second mutation that damaged the one good $Rb$ allele, producing a tumor. A child who develops a single tumor had, at birth, two good copies of the $Rb$ alleles in one cell (extremely rare) which caused a single tumor.

Work Step by Step

Some children with Retinoblastoma develop multiple tumors of the retina in both eyes, whereas others have a single tumor in only one eye.
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