Naked Science Forum
Life Sciences => Cells, Microbes & Viruses => Topic started by: wim on 25/09/2006 21:56:20
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The colour of one's hair is presumed to be genetically determined.
So how come that someone can have different colours of hair during his lifetime. Like children, who are first blond and then when being mature have for instance, dark brown hair(like me). You're anwers will be grately appreciated.
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hmmmm.... thats a good point i never though of. remember that your gene expression profile is different throughout different stages of development. however, the phenomenon that you are talking about is one of the latest changes in gene expression that i am aware of. very good question.
Are YOUR mice nude? [;)]
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I'm wierd, my younger brother and I were born with black hair and then went blond [8D]
Gaia xxx
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Hair color is controlled by more than one gene. There are also genes that control whether or not a gene is turned on or turned off. My guess is that as we get older, different genes get turned on. Just a guess...
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From what I remember, there are two types of melanin (=hair pigment), one giving blond/red hair (according to the concentration), the other giving brown/black hair (again according to the concentration).
There are also at least two types of genes involved, but I can not confirm that each is related to a specific type of melanin. Anyway, the concentration of melanin is also linked to nutrition. Maybe some foodstuffs increase the concentration of one type of melanin rather than the other.
Your hair turning gray or white with age is caused by a reduction or even halt of melanin production.
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When I was a young girl Little, I had very light brown hair, lots of Blond in it. Then at about 4 or 5 my hair became more red brown kind of a soft brown with lots of red Highlights. My father was a toe head my mother had Black Hair I have 1 Blond sister, one Red Head and the rest of us are brunettes same parents except my Baby sister who has a different father! My hair is brown, but has a lot of grey Its probably more a med brown now with lots of red and grey Highlights, no unnatural colors! I am curious as to your answers also as Mine has changed noticeably. My husband was a toe head when I met him and over a ten year period of time his hair changed to med to dark brown and now more grey also. Age of course but the hair color in youth puzzles me . Also I started getting my grey hairs when I was about 18 years old. Its not bad, but its definitely there when you are close to me. Not as noticeable in pictures though!
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I was told that my father had flax coloured hair as a little boy, which turned chessnut brown by the time he went to school. Seeing photographs of myself as a baby, my hair must have been much lighter than on my first school pictures. Two of my younger brothers also had flax coloured hair till the age of nine or ten, and both of them had really dark hair by the time they were through puberty. Of course, we are all grey by now - my own hair and beard show the same lack of pigmentation as that of a polar bear.
I often see children with lighter hair at the end of summer, lighter than at the end of winter, as if sunlight bleaches the hair. This is quite opposite to the popular belief (well, over here in continental Europe) that associates blond hair with the Nordic type. And of course, to make it a scientific observation, I should at least have photographs of the same children in say March and October.
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I have that too with my own hair even now as an adult. In the winter I am inside most all winter and my hair darkend, during the summer I am outside the majority of the day and my hair softens o a very light brown with Almost blonde highlights. It has to be the sun as I havent colored my hair for many years!!!!
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I had naturally blond hair until the age of about 20, and then it darkened somewhat. I've no idea why this should be.
Chris
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The colour of one's hair is presumed to be genetically determined.
So how come that someone can have different colours of hair during his lifetime. Like children, who are first blond and then when being mature have for instance, dark brown hair(like me). You're anwers will be grately appreciated.
Actually, mine is turning gray around the edges. But I'll speculate your question wasn't aimed at us seniors because everyone knows the reason for this reaction. Or do they?????????
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ethos I understand the greying all to well but mine have started at the scalp and they are long shiny silver streaks... lol something we indeed have in common....
I would like to say... my first born a daughter was born with black hair and tons of it. Her hair as she grew to 9 months old turned blonde red.. very rapidly... It was so light in color she looked bald but had plenty hair....Then as a kindergartner became very blonde eventually turning rather dishwater blonde in color...she is 27 still has that same hair color...
My husband is brunettewiyh lots of grey, except when he was a Honey blonde as a baby and until he was abouut 25. When we married he was 26 and his hair had turned brown that year before our wedding...
I was light bown with blonde and red highlights...but now its med. brown and grey when I don't color it.
So I would be guesing that age and change in body chemistry may have something to do with it, besides genetics and maybe the sun...