Bad hair days may be over, with
scientists hoping to develop a pill to
make hair straighter or curlier.
Australian researchers have discovered the gene that causes curly hair.
They are developing a treatment that could spell the end of hair straighteners.
Would you take a pill to beat a bad hair day? Have your say below
The discovery will also make it possible to predict if a baby will have straight or curly hair.
And it may even help police, with DNA found at the scene of the crime indicating how wavy a suspect's locks are.
The Queensland Institute of Medical Research team identified the trichohyalin gene as being responsible for creating hair curls.
Although it was known to play a role in the development of the hair follicle, the scientists have discovered its role in hair curliness.
Researcher Professor Nick Martin said a variation in the gene determined the straightness or curliness of hair.
It may be possible to come up with treatments to make hair straighter rather than relying on heated hair straighteners, he said.
"Potentially we can now develop new treatments to make hair curlier or straighter, rather than treating the hair directly," he said.
"I will be discussing this with a major cosmetic company in Paris in January."
But the most immediate application was in forensics.
"We might be able to refine identikit pictures, using DNA to say whether the suspect had straight or curly hair," Prof Martin said.
In the study, published in The American Journal of Human Genetics, Prof Martin and Dr Sarah Medland sought to find genetic variations responsible for curly hair in those of European descent.
Research showed that 45 per cent of European people have straight hair, 40 per cent wavy and 15 per cent curly hair.
The chance of inheriting curly hair is about 90 per cent.
Australian researchers have discovered the gene that causes curly hair.
They are developing a treatment that could spell the end of hair straighteners.
Would you take a pill to beat a bad hair day? Have your say below
The discovery will also make it possible to predict if a baby will have straight or curly hair.
And it may even help police, with DNA found at the scene of the crime indicating how wavy a suspect's locks are.
The Queensland Institute of Medical Research team identified the trichohyalin gene as being responsible for creating hair curls.
Although it was known to play a role in the development of the hair follicle, the scientists have discovered its role in hair curliness.
Researcher Professor Nick Martin said a variation in the gene determined the straightness or curliness of hair.
It may be possible to come up with treatments to make hair straighter rather than relying on heated hair straighteners, he said.
"Potentially we can now develop new treatments to make hair curlier or straighter, rather than treating the hair directly," he said.
"I will be discussing this with a major cosmetic company in Paris in January."
But the most immediate application was in forensics.
"We might be able to refine identikit pictures, using DNA to say whether the suspect had straight or curly hair," Prof Martin said.
In the study, published in The American Journal of Human Genetics, Prof Martin and Dr Sarah Medland sought to find genetic variations responsible for curly hair in those of European descent.
Research showed that 45 per cent of European people have straight hair, 40 per cent wavy and 15 per cent curly hair.
The chance of inheriting curly hair is about 90 per cent.
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