A cataract* (OMIM:601885) of genetic origin, which includes zonular pulverulent cataract, among others. Zonular or lamellar cataracts are opacities, broad or narrow, usually consisting of powdery white dots affecting only certain layers or zones between the cortex and nucleus of an otherwise clear lens.
The opacity may be dense, rendering the entire central lens completely opaque, or translucent, leaving the vision unaffected. Usually sharply separated from a clear cortex outside them, they may have projections from their outer edges known as riders or spokes.
*An opacification of the crystalline lens of the eye that frequently results in visual impairment or blindness. Opacities vary in morphology, are often confined to a portion of the lens, and may be static or progressive.
Molecular pathology Defects of GJA3, which encodes a gap junction protein (connexin) that is a component of lens fibre gap junctions, cause cataract 14—multiple types.