Wrong Chromosomes and their Effects by C. E. Ford, Ph.D.
Radiobiological Research Unit,
Harwell
1—Abnormalities of Sex Development Every normal man or woman has forty-six chromosomes in his or her body cells-at conception each parent contributes twenty-three; but occasionally the parental endowment is defective so that the new organism starts life with forty-five or forty-seven chromosomes rather than forty-six.
Wrong sets of chromosomes like these cause the subsequent development to be abnormal. Dr. Ford speaks of our increasing understanding of these genetic effects and their consequences.