Can we cure colour blindness?

Colour blindness, otherwise known as colour vision deficiency, affects around 8% of men.


Asked by: Hugh Diskin, Australia

No, colour blindness (also known ascolourvision deficiency) is caused by an inherited defect in the genes that code for the colour-sensitive proteins in the eye, leading to problemsin the development of one or more of the three sets of colour sensing cone cells in the retina of the eye.Males are more likely to inherit this gene as it is passed on the X chromosome. As females have two X chromosomes,a defect in one is typically compensated for by the other.

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