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Science & Technology
Blue-eyed folk are genetic mutant freaks kinda special
2008-02-02
“Originally, we all had brown eyes”, said Prof Hans Eiberg from the University of Copenhagen, who led the team.
Frank Sinatra, Stephen Hawking, Marie Curie and Stephen Fry all owe their blue eyes to a genetic mutation that likely occurred between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago, researchers say.

Scientists believe they have tracked down the cause of the eye colour of all blue-eyed humans on the planet today. “Originally, we all had brown eyes”, said Prof Hans Eiberg from the University of Copenhagen, who led the team.

Blue eye colour most likely originated from the near east area or northwest part of the Black Sea region, where the great agriculture migration to the northern part of Europe took place in the Neolithic periods about six–10,000 years ago. “That is my best guess,” he said. “It could be the northern part of Afghanistan.”
"Hell if I know," he added.
The mutation affected a gene called OCA2 and “literally 'turned off' the ability to produce brown eyes”, he says. OCA2 is involved in the production of melanin, the pigment that gives colour to hair, eyes and skin. The mutation in the adjacent gene does not switch off the OCA gene entirely but limits its action, reducing the production of melanin in the iris of the eye – “diluting” brown eyes to blue.

If the OCA2 gene had been completely turned off, those who inherited this mutation would be without melanin in their hair, eyes or skin colour - albino.

For the study, Prof Eiberg’s team examined DNA in blue-eyed individuals in countries as diverse as Jordan, India, Denmark and Turkey. His findings are the latest in a decade of genetic research, which began in 1996, when Prof Eiberg first implicated the OCA2 gene as being one of those responsible for eye colour. “They have all inherited the same switch at exactly the same spot in their DNA. From this we can conclude that all blue-eyed individuals are linked to the same ancestor,” said Prof Eiberg, who reports the work in the journal Human Genetics.
Posted by:Seafarious

#13  So we have evolved beyond the sand people of mecca.
Posted by: Icerigger   2008-02-02 19:11  

#12  How exciting to know that it was a single mutation, although the time bracket is a bit broader than is usually determined by this kind of research, I would think. This doesn't say whether the mutation happened only once (doubtful), but only that the other occurrences were not preserved through successful survival of descendants to the present. This kind of research is pretty common these days; someone traced the male line of Cohens (the high priests of the Temple in Jerusalem, they also have names like Kahn, Spahn, Cain) to a single man who lived at the time the Hebrews supposedly wandered out of Egypt. I don't recall whether they were able to determine if his name was Aaron, though, which is disappointing.
Posted by: trailing wife   2008-02-02 18:48  

#11  The daily double at Rantburg for us blue eyed Daves.

Posted by: DoDo   2008-02-02 18:10  

#10  i was being facetious lotp ya wily rascal ;)
Posted by: Broadhead6   2008-02-02 15:19  

#9  You two, and every other son of Adam and daughter of Eve, Broadhead. ;-)
Posted by: lotp   2008-02-02 15:12  

#8  my wife & i both have blue eyes........based on the study we're distantly related somehow....ewwwww...
Posted by: Broadhead6   2008-02-02 15:11  

#7  My first wife had the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen, same color as the autumn sky. Unfortunately that was her only redeeming feature. She once threatened to leave me if I got fat. I didn't, but she left me for someone with (temporarily) higher income anyway, and promptly gained 100 pounds.
Upon learning this, my second wife christened her "Jabba the Slutt" and I have habitually referred to her as "Jabba" ever since.

YOU MARRIED HER TOO! Jeebus this is a very small world! :)
Posted by: RD   2008-02-02 14:34  

#6  #4 Dirty mutant Scandis.
Posted by: Excalibur


heh - sounds like someone's been visiting Ace of Spades HQ
Posted by: Frank G   2008-02-02 10:42  

#5  Blue eye colour most likely originated from the near east area or northwest part of the Black Sea region, where the great agriculture migration to the northern part of Europe took place in the Neolithic periods about six–10,000 years ago. “That is my best guess,” he said. “It could be the northern part of Afghanistan.”

lol! So, in fact you haven't a clue. My "best guess" would be that it represents the time that an alien craft landed and had relations with the local townspeople.
Posted by: Elminetle Panda5853   2008-02-02 10:32  

#4  Dirty mutant Scandis.
Posted by: Excalibur   2008-02-02 10:14  

#3  Ima recall my beloved Peacher Pooh. 1 green, 1 bleu.

:<

Whooooooooooooo! Huskies FTW.
Posted by: Chang Smith8113   2008-02-02 09:25  

#2  My first wife had the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen, same color as the autumn sky. Unfortunately that was her only redeeming feature. She once threatened to leave me if I got fat. I didn't, but she left me for someone with (temporarily) higher income anyway, and promptly gained 100 pounds.
Upon learning this, my second wife christened her "Jabba the Slutt" and I have habitually referred to her as "Jabba" ever since.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy   2008-02-02 06:25  

#1  Us blue-eyed persons are the latest step in the evolution of man.
Posted by: BrerRabbit   2008-02-02 06:11  

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