Heterochromia and Eye Freckles??

[Kisa]

I have central heterochromia in both eyes. Green outside and brown inside. Also, in my right eye, I have a single eye freckle.

I've always noticed my freckle (when I was little, I thought the color in my iris was leaking out ), but never knew what it was until I switched Optimologists and my new doctor told me I had eye freckles and astigmatism. Apparently, eye freckles are very rare and normally(when presented) there are multiple freckles. I only have one.

When I got home that day, I looked at my eye really close for about 10 minutes and was surprised to see that I had a ring of green in my iris. I looked it up online and found out what it was called. However, it was today that I started to wonder how it happens. I took AP Biology and learned all about genetics and eye color, but I can't recall learning about heterochromia.

I looked it up and every site I clicked on said it is either genetics, injury or disease. I have bad eyesight and need glasses, but many people in my family wear glasses. I have no other symptoms that could cause this, no other family members have heterochromia, and I've never had and injuries near my head.
As for eye freckles, I can't seem to find anywhere what causes eye freckles. No family members have eye freckles either.

My questions are:

1) How could I have gotten green/brown central heterochromia?
2) What causes eye freckles?
3) What are the chances of a person having 2 rare eye conditions (one a rarity of a rarity) at the same time?

For referance, here is a picture of my right eye. The brown is near the pupil, the green is outside, and the freckle is that brown spot in the upper right corner near my iris.

[Eisa]

I have no idea, but you have a pretty eye, and I want to see the other one.

[Seshat]

My questions are:

1) How could I have gotten green/brown central heterochromia?
2) What causes eye freckles?
3) What are the chances of a person having 2 rare eye conditions (one a rarity of a rarity) at the same time?

1) Despite the fact that we simplify genetics into 'recessive' and 'dominant', it's actually a lot more complex than that.
For instance, with melanin (body pigment) alone, humans have both 'red melanin' and 'brown melanin'.
Red hair/green eyes is associated with red melanin.
Brown hair/brown eyes is associated with brown melanin.
Blonde hair/blue eyes has low levels of brown melanin.
Strawberry blonde hair/hazel eyes has low levels of both red and brown.
Dark red or auburn hair/dark brown or black eyes is high levels of both red and brown.
Black hair/black eyes can be very high levels of either, or of both.

BUT: even melanin isn't limited to two genes, one for red and one for brown. You probably have a particularly funky set of melanin genes, especially for the placement of melanin in the eyes.
No, I don't know exactly what sort of 'funky', but it's unusual, beautiful and (since your optical specialists don't seem to think you have an eye disease) harmless. So it sounds like a good sort of 'funky' to me.

2) If you have had it since birth, it's probably part of your unusual iris genetics. Your childhood imagination could be correct: your iris leaked.
More precisely, a few cells that would normally be part of the white of the eye instead got RNA instructions to collect melanin, like the iris would. They may even be functional iris cells, just not connected to the iris muscles.
NOTE: this is speculation, based on my knowledge of how infants develop in the womb. If you want an answer that you can rely on, please ask a specialist in eyes or a specialist in embryo/foetal development.
NOTE II: If it developed since birth, I can only answer with 'I'm not sure, I'd have to look it up'.

3) Clearly, at least one in six billion.
Actually, I'm not sure. I'd have to look it up.

[Tsiyeria]

I did not know this was a thing. And I have it too! The heterochromia, not the eye freckle. Mine change, though. Sometimes they're green, sometimes brown, sometimes something else (I can't remember what atm). I'm pretty sure I always have that ring, though. Weird!

[RecoveringKinkoid]

My daughter has central heterochromia. They are golden brown that fan out to a blue green. My mom has very dark green eyes with brown centers, so I'm guessing that's where she got it.

[Eisa]

I did not know this was a thing. And I have it too! The heterochromia, not the eye freckle. Mine change, though. Sometimes they're green, sometimes brown, sometimes something else (I can't remember what atm). I'm pretty sure I always have that ring, though. Weird!

I might have it too, really. There's a ring of sorts around my pupils and it changes color from a different shade of blue to gray to green to brown. It's very cool.

[Hyndis]

Its actually not all that uncommon to have heterochromia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heteroc...chromia_iridum

I also have central heterochromia. My eyes are blue and green.


And you want to know the really interesting thing? If you have heterochromia you may actually be two persons in one. You may be your own twin. Meaning you are essentially a perfect conjoined twin. Oddly enough this also does not seem to be that uncommon, but it has only been detectable in recent years since you need DNA testing technology in order to see it, and even then, you also need a reason to test a person for it, and multiple parts of their body. Just taking a blood sample won't do it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosaicism

[Seshat]

IIRC, two different eye colours (eg David Bowie) can indicate Mosaicism.

[Mishi]

So that's what it's called! I have medium blue with a gold ring around each pupil and a navy ring bordering each iris. The blue appears to change depending on my mood. Jazzy has ice-blue/grey with navy rings bordering each iris, and Bubbles has deep blue with very thin radiating streaks of ice-blue and navy rings bordering each iris. Rugz has deep blue with gold flecks and a navy ring bordering each iris, they appear to darken when he's angry.

[ThirdGenRetail]

I just had to go double-check one of my eyes... The center of my eyes are brown, the outer edges of the iris' are jade-green. And my sperm-donor(IE, dead-beat dad... Met him exactly once. In court.) has the same eyes... So... This means I got heterochromia from him? My state ID lists my eyes as 'hazel', though, so... IDK now.

[Treasure]

my eyes have always been labeled as "Hazel" as well, and they look pretty similar to Kisa's pic...
and I have always been told how beautiful my eyes are (they're seriously like the first thing people notice about me) and they change color (mood or clothing - i look damn good in greens!) and I think I have an eye freckle (or 2) on my left eye;

So Kisa, I don't think your eyes are all that "Odd, unusual or rare" after all; my mom's eyes are pretty much the same as mine, and both my brothers' eyes are similar.

[Little Retail Rabbit]

I also have heterochromia, central I think. The centre of my iris, around the pupil is yellow (I have a feeling it may actually be "brown" but its a very light brown and looks yellow). From what I can see the surrounding colour appears to be gray blue, fleck with lighter colour, but then the very outer edges of the iris are dark and bluish/grayish. My eyes appear to change colour in different lights- once they looked amber, often they look blue and I even have a photo where my eyes look to be a very deep green colour. I sometimes describe my eyes as blue-green because the yellow "starburst" certainly can make it look that way in some lights, but in honesty, I think my eye colour may actually be a combination of just yellow and dark blue-gray.

From a distance my eye colour is very dull looking, but on closer inspection its pretty cool

[LillFilly]

Your eyes are so pretty! Such a deep rich color, like honey and green amber.

My eyes change color sometimes; But funny, all my life my eye doctor said I had brown eyes. My new doctor says they're hazel, meaning I believe a base of grey with overtones of brown, not a base of brown. I also have a Nevus, it's a freckle in the actual pigment of the eye. I think it's neat, but it can be a sign of some medical problems, but since it's only one I'm not worried about it. See?

[Eisa]

That looks cool.

-spams eye picture-

[dragon_wings]

I adore my eyes. They are my favorite thing about me. I get compliments on my eyes more than anything else. They change from blue to green to hazel to anywhere in between. There's a darker ring around the outside and inside of the iris. My driver' license says blue. But I prefer when they're green.