What best describes the inheritance pattern of Galactosemia?

Galactosemia is best described as an autosomal recessive disorder. This means that the condition arises when an individual inherits two copies of the mutated gene, one from each parent. In the case of galactosemia, the most common form involves a deficiency in the enzyme galactose-1-phosphate uridyltransferase (GALT), which is crucial for the metabolism of galactose, a sugar found in milk and other dairy products.

When an individual has two mutated copies of the GALT gene, they are unable to properly process galactose, leading to its accumulation in the body, which can cause serious health problems such as liver damage, cataracts, and intellectual disabilities if not managed through dietary restriction.

The recessive nature of galactosemia means that carriers, who possess only one copy of the mutated gene, typically do not exhibit symptoms or health issues related to the disorder, but they can pass the gene to their offspring. This mode of inheritance contrasts with autosomal dominant disorders, where only one mutated copy can cause the condition, or X-linked disorders that typically affect males more severely when the gene is on the X chromosome. Mitochondrial inheritance involves genes located in mitochondrial DNA and is not applicable