Vivid representatives of a mixture of races and nationalities. Interesting facts about people suffering from albinism (24 photos) You quickly get used to difficulties and begin to consider them the norm. Perhaps in the future I will engage in other, less exhausting activities

Albinos are mysterious, mysterious, beautiful and the rarest on this planet! Let's try to figure out what albinism is and what are its causes

Albinism is a heterogeneous group of hereditary diseases of the pigment (melanin) system.
Albinism is a congenital absence of pigment in the skin and its appendages, the iris and pigment membranes of the eyes. The disease is based on the inability of melanocytes to form melanin, which is caused by inactivation of tyrosinase. Albinism has been known since ancient times and was described in Ancient Greece and Rome.

The expression “white crow” has long been a metaphor that means a sharp difference between a person or animal and others. “White crows” are found among many species of animals. Such individuals are called albinos, derived from the Latin word “albeus”, which means “white”. Albinos can be distinguished from other people without any difficulty: white hair, colorless eyelashes, transparent pale skin, glasses with thick lenses and portable telescopes in hands...According to scientists in Europe, approximately one in 20 thousand people is a white-skinned, blond-haired and red-eyed albino. However, in some places albinos are even more common. For example, you won’t believe it, when examining 14,292 black children in Nigeria, five were found to be albinos, which corresponds to a frequency of about 1 in 3,000, and among Panamanian Indians (San Blas Bay) the frequency was 1 in 132!

Why are people born albinos? So far no one can say how it really is. Some simply attribute everything to fate, some believe that these are mutations at the gene level. The cause of depigmentation is the complete or partial blockade of tyrosinase, an enzyme necessary for the synthesis of melanin, a substance on which the color of tissues depends. But what is the cause of the blockade - the answer to science is not yet known.

It is currently believed that the cause of the disease is the absence (or blockade) of the enzyme tyrosinase, which is necessary for the normal synthesis of melanin, a special substance on which the color of tissues depends. A variety of disorders can occur in the genes responsible for the formation of tyrosinase. The degree of pigment deficiency in people with albinism depends on the nature of the disorder. In some people suffering from this disorder, everything is fine with the formation of tyrosinase, and scientists suggest that in such cases, there may be a mutation in the genes that regulate the formation of another enzyme important for melanin metabolism.

Skin color is determined by the melanin content in keratinocytes, which are receptor cells for melanin-containing organelles (melanosomes) formed by melanocytes. Normally, skin color is determined by genetic or constitutional factors and remains in some areas of the body (buttock area), since the skin is not exposed to external influences, or its color changes under the influence of sunlight (tanning), as a result of increased pigmentation under the influence of hormones that stimulate melanocytes. The melanocyte system consists of melanocytes themselves (process cells functionally associated with some keratinocytes in a ratio of 1:36), localized at the border of the dermis and epidermis, in the hair follicles, uveal tract, retinal pigment epithelium, inner ear and pia mater. This system is similar to the chromaffin system, whose cells are also neural crest derivatives and have biochemical mechanisms to hydroxylate tyrosine into DOPA. However, in the chromaffin system, the enzyme is not tyrosinase, but tyrosine hydroxylase, and DOPA is converted into adrenochrome, and not into tyrosinomelanine. In humans, tyrosinase (copper-containing oxidase) activates the process of hydroxylation of tyrosine into DOPA and dophquinone. Zinc ions activate the conversion of dopachrome to 5,6-hydroxyindole, and melanosomes contain high concentrations of zinc. Pigmentation depends on four factors: the formation of melanosomes, their melanization and secretion, variable aggregation and destruction of melanosomes during their transition to keratinocytes. In the uveal tract and retinal pigment epithelium, melanin protects the eye from visible and long-wavelength radiant energy, while ultraviolet radiation is blocked by the cornea. In humans, the system of protection against ultraviolet radiation is highly developed; exposure to this part of the electromagnetic spectrum leads to the activation of a complex mechanism (tanning) for the formation of dense organelles containing chromoprotein (melanosomes) and their delivery to the epidermal cells, within which ultraviolet rays are scattered and absorbed, removing damaging action of free radicals formed in the skin as a result of exposure to ultraviolet radiation.

About 1 in 17,000 people have one of the subtypes of albinism. Approximately 18,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with albinism.
OCA-1 occurs in 1 in 40,000 people. OCA-2 is the more common type of albinism and is most common among African Americans and Africans. The estimated incidence of OCA-2 in African Americans is 1 in 10,000, while in whites it is 1 in 36,000. The average incidence for all races is 1 in 15,000.
Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome (HPS) is the most common type of albinism in Puerto Rico, with an incidence of 1 in 2,700. The condition is extremely rare in other parts of the world.

Morbidity and mortality:
Albinism does not cause increased mortality and their life cycle is the same as that of healthy people. Reduced levels of melanin in the skin, eyes and hair do not affect physical health. The growth and intellectual development of children with albinism are normal.
Albinism is associated with blurred vision, photosensitive skin, and an increased risk of skin cancer. People who have syndromes associated with albinism (such as Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome) may have decreased hearing or bleeding disorders. Albinism also has social consequences, as sufferers may feel like an outsider due to their appearance being different from their family members, colleagues and others of the same ethnic group.
Albinism occurs in all peoples. The parents of most children with albinism have the normal eye color characteristic of their ethnic group.
Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome is most common among Puerto Ricans.
Albinism affects both men and women. However, with HA-1 (X-linked recessive HA), only men are affected, while women are only carriers.

It is quite easy to diagnose patients with obvious cutaneous albinism, which cannot be said about more hidden forms and about patients with ocular albinism. Patients with ocular albinism often complain of decreased central vision and photophobia. Complaints of patients with cutaneous albinism include increased skin sensitivity to sunlight.
With some types of albinism, various other manifestations may occur. Thus, with Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome, hematomas (bruises) easily appear, nosebleeds are often observed, and increased bleeding after surgery or dental treatment. With Chediak-Higashi syndrome, infections are more likely to occur.
At home, people around them notice that children with albinism tend to read with their heads tilted and at close range.

The sight of albino animals has amused us for a long time. We look with affection at the “snow queen” with the face of a fox, at the “snow maiden” squirrels, at the hedgehog, as if carried away by the fog on needles... looking more like toys than their forest relatives. Their striking figures will decorate any shop window. In the forest or steppe, the bright white color of their fur coat gives them away - they are the first to be noticed by predators, and their prey quickly runs away from them. Being an albino is not easy and dangerous.

About three years ago, American biologist Dick Baldes noticed a dozen snow-white prairie dogs in the Wind River Nature Reserve. They were strikingly different from their relatives, inconspicuous, in gray, earthy coats. Their reddish eyes caught my eye for a long time.
A new trip to the reserve upset the scientist. Among the hundreds of dogs he found, he did not see a single albino. It's not hard to see why. These special beasts were visible from afar. They looked like targets scattered across the prairie. The white spots of their bodies were easily noticed by birds of prey, flying like stones right at the target. The unfortunate animals died, becoming another failure of nature, which put them on public display.
Nature experiments in a similar way regularly. Albinos were found among almost all types of animals: whales, moles, bats, birds and - let's go down to the last steps of Lamarck's ladder - turtles, amphibians, fish. So the “white crows” of the fauna would find Noah’s Ark too small. The storerooms of zoological museums are bursting with abnormally colored stuffed animals: there are “countless armies” of these rare beauties. Any museum director tried to acquire a unique item, so that ordinary animals became rare.

However, in museum rooms you can find not only full albinos, whose eyes glow with red beads, but also half-breeds, in whom only part of the body is painted white or, for example, only feathers and fur are white, and the rest of the figure is painted with ordinary paints. For example, there are semi-albino roe deer: in front they are, as expected, brown, and in the back they look as if they have sat down in a barrel of white paint. In winter, especially in a snow storm, such roe deer appear like a ghost: a muzzle, neck, front legs, withers appear in the air, and then the vision melts away; only a vague, whitish cloud floats among the snow flakes, and behind it the head of a deer with two jumping legs flies into the distance.
Albinos are much less common in nature than in museums. According to scientists, there is one complete albino per 10,000 animals. During a study of birds in Southern California, among 30,000 individuals, only 17 were found that in one way or another resembled albinos.
Looks like they don't exist anymore. And it’s not only predators who are to blame for this disappearing percentage of statistics. For nature, albinos are an extra expense, that's all. No matter how persistently she multiplies them, it’s all at a loss. For the perfection of color it pays for the soreness of the figure.

Many abinos birds have feathers that are too fragile, unlike feathers of the usual color. White tadpoles often cannot turn into toads and die without actually being born. Diurnal albinos have poor vision and are very sensitive to the sun. Thus, not a single case is known of an albino swallow that flew to Africa returning home. Lack of pigment is fatal to her. Having arrived for the winter, she finds herself in the “chamber of shadows”, from where she has no way back.
Albinos are persecuted not only by their enemies, but also by their brothers. To be a “black sheep” means to be persecuted. Most often, such “racism” is found in flocks of birds, for example, swallows and the same crows. Among the penguins, everyone drives away the albino, pecks him - he cannot find a mate.
However, sometimes even the albino’s enemies shower him with icy contempt. Thus, field studies have shown that a bird of prey, given a choice, will always peck an ordinary gray mouse, but will disdain a white one (as if it were some kind of sick person).

Did you know that the white tiger is not a separate species of tiger, but the most common tiger, born an albino?

But people have long liked animals in white robes and birds in white blouses. In many beliefs, whiteness means perfection and purity. Therefore, animals, separated from their fellows by a special, ideal color, were respected. Thus, in India, white elephants were revered.
Nowadays, it is even easier for albinos to get along with people than for animals that camouflage themselves. So, on the gray ribbon of the highway, a white figure is visible from a distance, so the driver will have time to brake. The “white crows” must at least have some luck!

Red albino look.

The skin of an albino animal is colored light pink. The fur, feathers or scales are white; eyes are reddish. The lack of pigment is apparently due to genetic reasons. Their pigment cells lack a special protein - tyrosinase, which is responsible for the synthesis of the dye. Albinism is a recessively hereditary trait and is therefore observed only in cases where both parents pass on the mutated gene to their offspring.

Albinism is one of the least studied phenomena on the planet. There are many myths about albino people. So, in many countries of the “dark” continent, albinos are considered cursed and they are confident that parts of these people are powerful talismans. But in fact, albinos are practically no different from other people. The only difference is the lack of pigmentation, which can cause a number of side symptoms - vision problems, painful sensitivity to sunlight. Our review contains interesting facts about people with incredibly white skin and hair.

1. Albinism is a congenital disease

Albinism is a congenital (existing at birth or occurring before birth) condition caused by reduced levels or complete absence of melanin. This pigment is responsible for the color of human skin, eyes and hair. Albinism is sometimes called hypopigmentation.

2. People with albinism

People with albinism can live long, healthy lives just like everyone else. The biggest danger for them comes from skin cancer, which develops more easily with unprotected sun exposure.

3. Pink or red

Although people with albinism are commonly thought of as having pink or red eyes, their iris color varies from light gray to blue (the most common) and even brown. The reddish color comes from light reflected from the back of the eye, in the same way that people sometimes have red eyes in photographs due to flash.

4. Nystagmus and photophobia

People with albinism often have one or more eye conditions. The most common include nearsightedness, involuntary eye movements (nystagmus), and sensitivity to light (photophobia).

5. "Moby Dick"

Herman Melville's famous book Moby Dick is based on a real-life albino whale known as Mocha Dick. The "White Whale of the Pacific" was a sperm whale that lived near Mocha Island off southern Chile. He managed to survive countless attacks by whalers and always attacked fiercely in response if the whalers began to hunt him.

6. "Faulty" genes

Albinism is caused by a disorder at the cellular level. "Faulty" genes do not produce melanin.

7. Albinism is not uncommon

Although this disorder occurs in approximately one in 20,000 people in the United States, its prevalence is higher in other parts of the world. For example, in some parts of Africa, there is 1 albino for every 3,000 people.

8. Vitamin D

People with albinism synthesize vitamin D five times faster than people with dark skin. Because vitamin D is formed when ultraviolet B light penetrates the skin, the lack of pigmentation means that light can more easily penetrate the skin.

9. Albinism does not require treatment

It is common knowledge that albinism does not require treatment. However, skin and eye diseases that accompany albinism require specialized treatment.

10. Different types of albinism

There are many different types of albinism. Oculocutaneous albinism is the most common and most severe. Its distinguishing feature is a person's hair and skin, which remains pale white throughout his or her life.

11. Albinism can go away

Some children born with less severe forms of albinism are born with white hair and skin. However, as they grow older, their skin and hair darken slightly.

12. Erythrism, xanthism, vitiligo

Apart from albinism, there are various other pigmentation disorders. The most common include erythrism (excessive red pigmentation), xanthism (yellow pigmentation) and vitiligo (loss of pigmentation in the form of spots on the skin).

13. One in 17,000

Scientists have found that one in 17,000 people has some form of the albinism gene. Although it affects both sexes equally, men are more likely to have ocular albinism: a lack of pigment in the eyes.

14. Persecution of albino people

Albino people have been persecuted and bullied around the world for centuries. Some of this persecution stems from the belief that albinos are cursed or that their body parts have magical powers that can be used by witch doctors.

15. Albino animals are not uncommon

Albinism can also affect any vertebrate in the animal kingdom. In fact, albino animals are not such a rarity.

16. Symbol of power and good luck

In some cultures, albino animals are highly valued. Native Americans, for example, consider white bison to be symbols of power and good luck. They also protect these animals.

17. Every seventieth

About one in seventy people has one gene for albinism. If both parents have the gene for albinism, there is a 25% chance that the child will be born with the disorder.

18. One "normal" gene

To be born with albinism, a child must have "defective" genes from both of its parents. If a child inherits one normal gene and one albinism gene, the "normal" gene will produce enough melanin.

19. Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome

One of the most severe types of albinism is known as Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome. People with this change are prone to bleeding, bruising, and lung disease.

20. Vitiligo

There is a skin pigmentation disorder associated with albinism called vitiligo. During it, only some areas of the skin lose pigments. Famous people with vitiligo include the late Michael Jackson and Canadian model Winnie Harlow.

21. Albinism is most common in Africa

Albinism is the most common condition in sub-Saharan Africa. Some evolutionary biologists argue that when humans evolved from primate to hominid and lost most of their hair, the skin underneath the no longer existing hair was pale. People who produced more melanin (and thus had dark skin) are believed to have had an evolutionary advantage.

22. Melanin test

Scientists can test whether one of the parents has the gene for albinism. This is done by testing the ability of the hair follicle to produce melanin.

23. "Spirits of the Colonists"

East Africa (especially Tanzania) has the largest number of people in the world with albinism. Uneducated people in this area believe that the mother of an albino child cheated on her husband with a white man, or that such children are the spirits of former European colonists possessing the children.

24. Alibinism is incurable

Alibinism is currently incurable. There is no single drug that can cause the body to produce melanin and reduce the symptoms of albinism.

25. Let's leave prejudices to the Middle Ages

To summarize, albinism is a genetic and not an infectious disease. Let's leave prejudices to the Middle Ages.

However, it is not so easy for humanity to part with prejudices. To be convinced of this, it is enough to learn about.

If you are not like everyone else, in a primitive society, you are a target. For example, in Tanzania In recent years, more than 20 albinos have been killed.

Here are the facts about albinism, along with photographs:

Albinos in Tanzania became victims of beliefs and superstitions, according to which the skin, meat and bones of albinos can be successfully used to treat all sorts of diseases. These rumors are sometimes deliberately spread by local healers and have gradually begun to spread in neighboring Kenya.. In Israel, there was a case of granting asylum to a refugee family from Cote d’Ivoire, in which an albino girl was born.

Treatment for albinism is unsuccessful. It is impossible to compensate for the lack of melanin or prevent visual impairment associated with albinism.

It is important for albinos to avoid sun exposure and use light-protective means when going outside: filters, sunglasses or tinted lenses. Typically, these functions are performed by melanin.

Griffin, the main character in H.G. Wells' novel The Invisible Man, is an albino.

Sometimes albinos need surgery, particularly to correct the extraocular muscles for strabismus, which is common in albinos.

In general, albinos have vision problems, such as nystagmus - involuntary oscillatory movements eye high frequency (up to several hundred per minute).

Albinos are also characterized by the lack of pigmentation of the iris (usually gray-blue or light brown) and its transparency.

The red color of the eyes of albino animals is the color of the blood in the vessels of their retina. Albino people have red eyes very rarely; as a rule, a person’s eye always contains a shading pigment, usually coloring the iris pale blue or yellowish.

Due to the hypersensitivity of the skin to the light of the sun, there is an increased risk of developing malignant tumors among albinos.

In the Middle Ages, albino people were burned at the stake because they were considered assistants to the devil.

Statistics say that “colorless” ones are born 6 times more often among blacks than among Europeans. For every 3,000 black offspring there is 1 albino.

The albinism gene is recessive. This means that when an unusual child is born, the gene is present in both parents.

People with albinism live long and healthy lives just like others. The biggest danger for them is skin cancer, which develops more easily due to exposure to solar radiation.

People with albinism synthesize vitamin D five times faster than people with dark skin. Since vitamin D is produced when UVB rays hit the skin, the lack of pigmentation means that light penetrates much more easily.

On average, 1 in 17,000 people have some form of albinism. In men, ocular albinism is more common - the absence of pigment in the eyes.

One of the most serious types of albinism is known as Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome. People with this disorder are prone to bleeding, bruising, and lung problems.

Some people born with a less severe form of albinism have white hair and skin that darkens slightly as they age.

Scientists can test whether parents have the albinism gene by looking at whether the hair follicle produces melanin.