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albino |
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albino (ălbī`nō) [Port.,=white], animal or plant lacking normal pigmentation. The absence of pigment is observed in the body covering (skin, hair, and feathers) and in the iris of the eye. The blood vessels of the retina show through the iris, giving it a pink or reddish color, and the eyes are highly sensitive to light. Albinism is inherited as a Mendelian recessive character (see Mendel Mendel, Gregor Johann (grā`gôr yō`hän mĕn`dəl) ..... Click the link for more information. ; genetics genome, or characteristic set of genes, that contains the total genetic information for an individual organism. In many familiar organisms two genes for each trait are present in each individual, and these paired genes, both governing the same trait, are called alleles. ..... Click the link for more information. ) in humans and other animals. Through experimental breeding, races of albinos have been established among some domestic animals, e.g., mice, rabbits, pigeons, and chickens. Albino animals are sometimes held sacred, for example, white elephants in Thailand and white cattle in India. The presence of an excess of black pigment is called melanism. albino 1. a person with congenital absence of pigmentation in the skin, eyes, and hair 2. any animal or plant that is deficient in pigment albino [al′bī·nō] (biology) A human or animal with a congenital deficiency of pigment in the skin, hair, and eyes. (botany) An abnormal plant with colorless chromatophores. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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What is it that in the Albino man so peculiarly repels and often shocks the eye, as that sometimes he is loathed by his own kith and kin He was, to my surprise, no Indian, but a white man; indeed, I may say a very white man, for he was flaxen-haired and had some characteristics of an albino. A white ass, but not an albino, has been described without either spinal or shoulder-stripe; and these stripes are sometimes very obscure, or actually quite lost, in dark-coloured asses. |
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