Eggheads reckon they will be able to cure baldness after discovering the rare gene mutations causing blokes to become slapheads.
Boffins examined the genetics of more than 70,000 fellas before they found DNA variants they have now linked for the first time to male pattern baldness.
A team at the University of Bonn, Germany, hope their revelations, published in the journal Nature Communications, could help identify chaps most at risk of becoming baldies and boost their treatment options.
READ MORE: Boffins use science to calculate the scariest scenes in horror movie history
For the latest news from the Daily Star, click here.
Until now, research has focussed on how baldness is inherited down through common genes including androgen receptors, which are passed down through the mother’s X chromosome.
But the Germany-based scientists have looked into how different genes and their variations influence our barnets.
They studied the genetic sequences of 72,469 blokes, searching for those that may cause receding hairlines, horse-shoe shaped baldness or total loss hair.
Their analysis highlighted five genes linked with hair loss – EDA2R, WNT10A, HEPH, CEPT1, and EIF3F.
Sabrina Henne from the University of Bonn said about mutations in the latter two causing baldness: “The genes CEPT1 and EIF3F are located in genetic regions that have not yet been associated with male-pattern hair loss.
“They are thus entirely new candidate genes, and we hypothesize that rare variants within these genes contribute to the genetic predisposition.”
She added: “HEPH, CEPT1, and EIF3F represent highly plausible new candidate genes, given their previously described role in hair development and growth.”
In January, boffs announced they could be on the brink of a baldness cure after they discovered a “caveman gene” that caused our ancestors to grow hair.
They found humans are largely hairless because even though we have the genes for a full coat of hair, evolution has disabled them.
Scientists say the breakthrough could lead to ways to regrow hair in bald people, those undergoing chemotherapy or alopecia sufferers.
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.
Source: Read Full Article