Genetic secret of eye color

2007/02/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Genetika
• Anatomia/Fisiologia

According to some Australian researchers, the secret of eye color is in the regulation of genes. There is no gender that defines color, but one that is responsible for creating the pigment. This gene changes the color of the eye with greater or lesser expression, so the color of the eyes is determined by the control point of the gene. That is, the color of the eyes is determined by a small sequence of molecular DNA bases that is not found within the gene.

This small sequence varies from person to person. People who activate the gene much produce a lot of pigment and have brown eyes, while those who activate it little produce little pigment and have blue eyes. Green eyes are special: another small change in the genome makes the pigment green and not blue.

The pigment gene, called OCA2, also acts on the skin and hair. In fact, those who have the gene completely silenced are albino people.