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Sex and genetic differences in hair color changes during early childhood
Author(s) -
Matheny Adam P.,
Dolan Anne Brown
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
american journal of physical anthropology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.146
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1096-8644
pISSN - 0002-9483
DOI - 10.1002/ajpa.1330420106
Subject(s) - concordance , zygosity , skin color , eye color , biology , demography , genetics , gene , artificial intelligence , sociology , computer science
Hair color was assessed routinely from three months to six years for children participating in a longitudinal study of twins: 169 female twin pairs, 161 male pairs, and 60 opposite‐sex pairs. Age trends, established by sampling only one member of every pair, showed marked changes in hair color for both sexes, but there was a consistent excess of light‐haired males and dark‐haired females. Within‐pair concordance rates were calculated for same‐sex pairs whose zygosity had been determined independently through blood‐typing. A high rate of concordance was found for MZ twins at every age in spite of the general change in hair color, indicating a strong genetic influence in the timing of color changes. The results are discussed in terms of accelerated maturation of females, and the need for genetic models of the inheritance of hair color which are age‐ and sex‐specific.