Islanders with blonde hair and dark, almost black skin make up 10% of the population, the highest prevalence found outside of Europe (and the same as in Ireland). Until now it was thought that these percentages werefruit of miscegenation, that is, a trait passed down by European explorers and traders who visited the islands centuries ago. For their part, the natives of the island believe that the golden hue has to do with their long exposure to the sun and a diet very rich in fish. But none of that. The new research published in the journalScience reveals, without a doubt, that the platinum color of the hair of the Melanesians is due to aunique genetic variant.
Taking samples to compare the genomes of the Solomon Islanders and reaching this conclusion was not easy. On the one hand, because a large part of the islands are underdeveloped, without roads, electricity or telephones. In addition, it is one of the most linguistically diverse nations in the world, with dozens of languages spoken.
However, the efforts ultimately paid off and the researchers identified a single gene, calledTYRP1, which encodes atyrosinase-related protein, an enzyme previously recognized for its influence on pigmentation in mice and humans. Genetic analysis revealed that the variant of this gene responsible for the blonde color is absent in Europeans. “So blonde hair came up twice, separately, in Europe and Oceania,” explains Eimear Kenny, a co-author of the study. “It is unexpected and fascinating.”
