Science & Technology

Why are we not all the same height ?

By T.K. Randall
October 7, 2014 ·  12 comments

Individual human beings exhibit a wide range of different heights. Image Credit: sxc.hu Researchers now believe that they have identified several hundred genetic mutations in humans that are thought to contribute to how tall we will become as we are growing up.

The findings could help scientists develop new treatments for growth abnormalities or other height-related conditions such as osteoporosis, cancer and heart disease.

They could even prove helpful during criminal investigations."In a few years times it may well be possible to take a DNA sample from a crime scene and tell a policeman that the suspect is likely to be a certain height, or at least to narrow the height down," said Professor Tim Frayling of the University of Exeter.

Somewhere around 80 percent of the normal variation in human height can be attributed to inherited genetic differences with the rest being down to other factors such as a person's diet and upbringing.

"Many of the genes we identified are likely to be important regulators of skeletal growth, but were not known to be involved until now," said Professor Joel Hirschhorn of Boston Children's Hospital.

"Some may also be responsible for unexplained syndromes of abnormal skeletal growth in children."

Source: Independent | Comments (12)

Tags: Height, Humans