What is Tay-Sachs disease?

Tay-Sachs disease is a disease of the central nervous system. It is a genetic disorder meaning it can only be inherited and is almost always fatal. The disease appears in mostly babies but some people have experienced a late on set of the disease. In a healthy body enzymes clear out a fatty protein, called ganglioside, and unwanted substances so baby can develop vision, movement, hearing etc. A baby with Tay-Sachs disease is born without the enzyme called Hexosaminidase A (Hex A). Hex A is one of the enzymes that clear out the fatty proteins, but without it the fatty proteins build up in the nerve cells in the brain. In reaction to the build up the baby's hearing, sight, movement and mental development is affected. A relentless deterioration of mental and physical abilities will occur.

Tay-Sachs disease is an autosomal recessive genetic condition. A baby will only receive the disease if both parents are carriers of the gene. When two......

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Title: What Is Tay-Sachs Disease
Approximate Word Count: 3064
Approximate Pages: 13 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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