More or less thick, this is where the shape of your eyebrows comes from

Have you noticed that your eyebrows have the same appearance as those of your parents ? The natural variation of thickness eyebrows is one of most visible facial features. And “to understand its origin is of a great interest in dermatology“ point out the authors of a study published in the Journal of Investigate Dermatology.. This study is the first one to look into the hereditary nature of the thickness of the eyebrows among Europeans. Until now, genetic knowledge on this aspect was very limited and only reserved for non-Europeans. Previous studies have targeted Latin American and Chinese individuals. “Despite immense efforts to map the genes underlying complex human traits, we still know a lot more about the genes that make us sick than on those who are the origin of our appearance” explained Dr Manfred Kayser, from the Department of Genetic Identification, Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam, who initiated the study.

Why they look like your parents’…

Their research conducted with 9,948 people discovered three previously unreported genetic loci (fixed position of a gene on a chromosome) and associated with eyebrow thicknessbut also rediscovered two of the four genetic loci previously found in non-Europeans. “So we have discovered new genes involved in eyebrow variation in Europeans and rediscovered some of the genes previously identified in non-Europeans.” Clearly, the appearance of your eyebrows has a hereditary character, hence the fact that they most certainly resemble those of your parents. And also have points in common with those of Europeans. “Our study improves genetic knowledge about the appearance of human eyebrows by increasing the number of known genes from four to seven and provides new targets for future functional studies” rejoiced Dr Kayser before emphasizing the interest of continuing the genetic investigations of other human physical traits.