Karyotypes describe the number of chromosomes in an organism, and provide a picture of what they look like under a light microscope. Attention is paid to their length, the position of the centromeres, banding pattern, differences between the sex chromosomes, and any other physical characteristics.
Karyotypes can be used for many purposes - to study chromosomal aberrations, cellular function, taxonomic relationships, and to gather information about past evolutionary events, for example. Chromosomal disorders, like Down Syndrome, show up clearly in karyotype analysis.
(Fonte: amolecularmatter)
