We all have chromosomes inside cells of our bodies. Under the microscope the chromosomes appear as long strands.
Chromosomes are the tiny structures on which our genes are located.
It is normal to have 23 pairs of chromosomes in each cell, consisting of one set of 23 from the mother and one set of 23 from the father. 22 of these pairs are assigned sequential numbers, and the 23 rd pair is called the sex-determining chromosomes. A simple way to examine our chromosomes is to look at a karyotype. Many human disorders and malformations are a direct result of missing, broken, or extra chromosomes. In a karyotype, scientists called cytogenetics technologists and cytogeneticists can recognize and identify many of these large chromosomal abnormalities.