Trisomy 13: Patau Syndrom

Noah Meine

Mr. Youell

9B Science

October 10, 2014

Trisomy 13: Patau Syndrome

          In a recent article, published by Life Site a women named Kara McHenry was informed on September 12^th 2013 that she is pregnant with a baby that had a genetic disorder called Trisomy 13, or commonly referred to as the Patau Syndrome. Doctors told Kara and her husband, Shane, that having Trisomy 13 made baby Corbin “incompatible with life”, and that there was a mere 1% chance that Corbin would be born breathing. No matter how slim the odds were Kara wanted to keep the baby alive.

            Baby Corbin was born seven weeks premature and faced a very low chance of surviving. For most babies with Trisomy 13, there is a 5-10% chance of surviving the first few days. For Corbin this chance was less than 1%. However, despite the odds present, Corbin survived the first few days and continued fighting on.  From then on Kara began celebrating Corbin’s life through a Facebook page named “Prayers for Corbin”. Kara would post a picture of Corbin every day and receive support from strangers. Corbin passed away at 135 days and had gained over half a million fans on Facebook. His parents and fans mourned his death, but at the same time celebrated his life. Below you can see Corbin at 115 days old (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Bay Corbin at 115 Days Old

            So what is Trisomy 13, and how did it affect Corbin genetically? Trisomy 13 or Patau syndrome is a genetic disorder. The term trisomy is used to describe the presence of three chromosomes, rather than the usual pair of chromosomes. In Trisomy 13 there are three copies of genetic material from chromosome 13, instead of the typical two copies, or pair of chromosomes. Trisomy 13 occurs when there is extra DNA is present in some or all of the body cells, and it is caused by nondisjunction during meiosis. As far as scientists know Trisomy 13 cannot be inherited, however according to The University of Rochester Medical Center  the chance of a baby being born with Trisomy 13 increases as the mother ages.  Trisomy 13 also includes a number of birth defects. This includes intellectual disability, as well as physical problems involving nearly every organ system in the body. Lastly Trisomy 13 occurs in approximately 1 out of every 1600 newborns.

            In conclusion, the significance of this story is more than a baby getting attention for having a genetic mutation, but it is more about the fight for survival and Trisomy 13 itself. This is also significant to people suffering from any chromosomal disorder and how science can help us predict genetic disorders and how people will still care about each other regardless.