Does a Chinese Boy Really Have “Cat Eyes” That See in the Dark?

This young Chinese boy can catch crickets in the dark and can even complete a writing test in a pitch-black stairwell. How? At first experts considered one possibility which is that the boy has a mutation that produced a "tapetum lucidum", an extra layer of tissue that helps cats see in the dark. However, James Reynolds, a pediatric ophthalmologist states that this explanation was impossible. There is no single genetic mutation that would be able to produce a fully functioning tapetum lucidum; this would require multiple mutations occurring all at once. Evolution happens incrementally, and such mutations could only be modified over long periods, not by leaps. "A functional tapetum in a human would be just as absurd as a human born with wings"- Reynolds stated. Reynolds suggests instead that the boy may just have a very high number of "rods" (our human photo-receptors that work well in low light).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Xfs0R-7cS_s

The article is hypothesis based because they are not sure exactly why the young child has these "cat eyes".
It is an important finding for humans because this child is a human , and it is amazing to know about these rare exceptions that the human body develops. It is interesting to find out why they occur. It is also interesting to think... What is human ancestors once had the tapetum, but a mutation long ago broke the characteristic?

"Does a Chinese Boy Really Have “Cat Eyes” That See in the Dark? | 80beats | Discover Magazine." Discover Blogs | Discover Magazine. Web. 07 Feb. 2012. .