summary: People who look alike but are not related share similar DNA, a new study reports. The findings also suggest that shared genetic variations are related not only to similar physical appearance but also to common habits and behaviors.
Source: cell press
A collection of genetically unrelated similar looking photographs together with DNA analysis revealed that strong facial similarity is associated with shared genetic variants.
The work appears August 23 in the journal cell report,
“Our study provides a rare insight into human similarity, showing that people with highly visible faces share a common genotype, whereas they do not share the epigenome and microbiome,” says senior author Manel Esteller, from the Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute in Barcelona. levels are inconsistent.” , Spain. “Genomics groups them together, and the rest separates them.”
The expansion of the World Wide Web and the possibility of exchanging photos of humans across the planet has led to an increase in the number of people identified online as genetically unrelated virtual twins or doubles. In the new study, Esteller and his team set out to characterize, at the molecular level, random humans who fairly share facial features.
To do this, they recruited human duets from the photographic work of François Brunelle, a Canadian artist who has been acquiring look-alike images around the world since 1999. They obtained headshot photos of 32 similar looking couples. The researchers determined an objective measure of similarity for the pairs using three different facial recognition algorithms.
In addition, participants completed a comprehensive biometric and lifestyle questionnaire and provided salivary DNA for multimix analysis. “This unique set of samples has allowed us to study how genomics, epigenomics and microbiomics may contribute to human similarity,” Esteller says.
Overall, the results showed that these individuals share similar genotypes, but differ in their DNA methylation and microbiome landscape. Half of the identical looking pairs were clustered together by all three algorithms. Genetic analysis revealed that 9 of these 16 pairs clustered together based on 19,277 common single-nucleotide polymorphisms.
In addition, physical traits such as weight and height, as well as behavioral traits such as smoking and education, were correlated in similar looking pairs. Taken together, the results suggest that shared genetic variation is not only related to similar physical appearance, but may also affect common habits and behavior.
“We have provided a unique insight into the molecular features that potentially influence the formation of the human face,” Esteller says.
“We suggest that these same determinants are related to both the physical and behavioral characteristics that constitute man.”
Some study limitations include the small sample size, the use of 2D black-and-white images, and the predominance of European participants. Despite these caveats, the findings may provide a molecular basis for future applications in various fields such as biomedicine, development and forensics.
“These results will have future implications in forensic medicine — reconstruction of the criminal’s face from DNA — and in genetic diagnosis — a picture of a patient’s face will already give you clues as to which genome he or she has,” says Esteller.
“Through collaborative efforts, the ultimate challenge will be to predict the structure of a human face based on the individual’s multidimensional landscape.”
About this genetics research news
Author: Press Office
Source: cell press
contact: Press Office – SAIL Press
image: Image credits to François Brunelle
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Basic Research: open access.
“Similar-looking humans identified by facial recognition algorithms show genetic similarities” by François Brunelle et al. cell report
essence
Similar-looking humans identified by facial recognition algorithms show genetic similarities
Highlight
- Facial recognition algorithms identify “look alike” humans for multimix study
- Intrapair look-alike share common genetic sequence as do facial trait variants
- DNA methylation and microbiome profiles contribute only marginally to human similarity
- Identified SNPs affect physical and behavioral phenotypes beyond facial features
summary
The human face is one of the most visible features of our unique identity as individuals. Interestingly, monozygotic twins share nearly identical facial features and the same DNA sequence but may exhibit differences in other biometric parameters.
The expansion of the World Wide Web and the possibility of exchanging photos of humans across the planet has led to an increase in the number of people identified as virtual twins or couples online who are not related to the family.
Here, we have characterized in detail a set of “alike-looking” humans for their multidimensional landscape, as defined by facial recognition algorithms. We report that these individuals share similar genotypes and differ in their DNA methylation and microbiome landscape.
These results not only provide insight into the genetics that determine our faces but may also have implications for the establishment of other human anthropometric traits and even personality characteristics.
(This story has not been edited by seemayo staff and is published from a rss feed)