Merxwire
12 Jan 2022, 21:58 GMT+10
Fudan University (FDU) in Shanghai, China & Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health (SINH), Chinese Academy of Sciences found that higher frequency of whorl patterns was associated with longer little finger.
Beijing China (Merxwire) - Fingerprints are a kind of skin texture that can increase the friction between fingers and objects so that people can grasp objects, and fingerprints can also leave imprints on objects. On the other hand, a fingerprint is like a person's ID card because each person's fingerprint pattern is unique. Are you curious why the fingerprint is the current pattern? Well, you might be interested in this study, published in the first issue of Cell in 2022.
People use fingerprints for identification now, but it may have more uses in the future, as scientists have discovered an association between fingerprints and genes related to limb development.
FDU and relevant teams of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have joined more than ten research institutions to use genome-wide scans in the Han population to identify 18 loci associated with fingerprint types, and finally confirmed that limb development-related genes dominate the formation of fingerprint patterns.
In the study, the researchers conducted a large-scale GWAS, a cross-ethnic meta-analysis of more than 23,000 individuals, and experiments using mice to verify the importance of limb development-related genes in the formation of dermatoglyphic patterns in mice.
"People may wonder why our team is working on fingerprints," says Sijia Wang, a geneticist at the Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and co-senior author on the paper.
"We started the work purely out of curiosity. But later it turns out fingerprint pattern is associated with genes for limb growth, which are critical for fetal development. This provides another classic example of pleiotropy, when multiple phenotypes are interrelated to each other and are affected by the same genes." Sijia Wang said in a press release.
The researchers pointed out that the more whorl patterns a person had, the longer his pinky finger became. The most groundbreaking feature of this study is that people have never found out what genes are responsible for the differences in fingerprint patterns before. This is the first time that the differences in fingerprints have been found to be caused by genes related to limb development.
This research contributes to the in-depth study of genetics through the external characteristics of the human body. It has great value in various fields such as congenital disease screening and human disease prevention. For example, taking a fingerprint after a baby is born can identify the child's chance of developing Down's syndrome, so that the child can get help earlier.
Get a daily dose of Utah Independent news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Utah Independent.
More InformationATLANTA, Georgia: The United States is facing its worst measles outbreak in more than three decades, with 1,288 confirmed cases so...
In the past month alone, 23 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza—three more than the number of remaining living hostages held...
LONDON, U.K.: At least 13 people are believed to have taken their own lives as a result of the U.K.'s Post Office scandal, in which...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Travelers at U.S. airports will no longer need to remove their shoes during security screenings, Department of Homeland...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: An elaborate impersonation scheme involving artificial intelligence targeted senior U.S. and foreign officials in...
SLUBICE, Poland: Poland reinstated border controls with Germany and Lithuania on July 7, following Germany's earlier reintroduction...
REDMOND, Washington: Artificial intelligence is transforming Microsoft's bottom line. The company saved over US$500 million last year...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: A federal rule designed to make it easier for Americans to cancel subscriptions has been blocked by a U.S. appeals...
BASTROP, Texas: In a surprising turn at Elon Musk's X platform, CEO Linda Yaccarino announced she is stepping down, just months after...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Former British prime minister Rishi Sunak will return to Goldman Sachs in an advisory role, the Wall Street...
LONDON, U.K.: Physically backed gold exchange-traded funds recorded their most significant semi-annual inflow since the first half...
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: Some 32 percent of global semiconductor production could face climate change-related copper supply disruptions...