albinism

The first thing to do to be clear about the meaning of the term albino is to know its etymological origin. And in this case we have to state that it is a word that comes from Latin, exactly from "albinus", which is synonymous with "white" and which, in turn, derives from "albus".

Is named albinism to the condition that the albino: the living being that, for one lack of pigmentation, has hair, skin or other parts of your body of a color closer to the White in comparison to the usual shades of its race or species.

The concept of albinism refers to different genetic alterations that occur from mutations of the genes. These changes make the melanin or that its level is reduced considerably. In the case of plants, it is produced by the absence of carotenes or other substances.

In the human being and other animals, cells called melanocytes turn the tyrosine (an amino acid) in melanin. This pigment is distributed throughout the body, protecting and providing color to the iris of the eye, hair and skin. Those who have albinism cannot generate melanin or cannot distribute the pigment throughout the body.

Albinism is a hereditary condition. According to how the disorder, it is possible to speak of different types of albinism: complete albinism, oculocutaneous albinism, etc.

It is established that people who have albinism share a series of significant characteristics, in addition to those already mentioned:
-A high percentage of albinos have severe vision problems that cannot even be corrected by wearing glasses. And it is that both the retina and the connections between the brain and eyes are in an abnormal situation.
-Your complexion is really clear, so it is necessary that the protection that you use with respect to the sun is very strong, since otherwise it could have serious consequences for your skin.
No less important is that the vast majority of those with albinism face a high risk of social isolation. And it is that in many corners of the planet there are absurd legends and prejudices regarding these individuals. A good example of this is Africa where in many of the countries albinism is associated with witchcraft, hence those who are albinos are subjected to persecution to end their lives. The latest data in this regard indicate that in recent years more than 160 people have been murdered by this condition in the aforementioned continent.

The musicians Johnny winter Y Hermeto Pascoal and the actor and writer Dennis Hurley are some of the famous personalities with albinism. In the case of animals, several have become popular in captivity, such as the gorilla Snowflake (died 2003) and the penguin Snowdrop (died 2004).

It should be noted that albino animals face many inconveniences to survive in the wild due to the ease that predators have to detect them and because of the damage they suffer from the rays of the Sun.