Search Result for "tay-sachs_disease":
Wordnet 3.0

NOUN (1)

1. a hereditary disorder of lipid metabolism occurring most frequently in individuals of Jewish descent in eastern Europe; accumulation of lipids in nervous tissue results in death in early childhood;
[syn: Tay-Sachs disease, Tay-Sachs, Sachs disease, infantile amaurotic idiocy]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Tay-Sachs Disease \Tay"-Sachs Disease\, n. (Med.) A rare hereditary disease affecting lipid metabolism in humans, due to a deficiency of hexosaminidase. It occurs in infants and children, and causes death before the onset of adulthood. It occurs most commonly of people of Jewish origin from easter Europe. It is characterized by accumulation of lipids in nervous tissue, causes a red spot on the retina, and eventual blindness and paralysis before death. [PJC]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

Tay-Sachs disease n 1: a hereditary disorder of lipid metabolism occurring most frequently in individuals of Jewish descent in eastern Europe; accumulation of lipids in nervous tissue results in death in early childhood [syn: Tay-Sachs disease, Tay- Sachs, Sachs disease, infantile amaurotic idiocy]