DNA Traits · Appearance
Blond hair association
How light scalp hair is.
Free, once per account. Your own private report.
Evidence · Replicated
What the research found
In the cited research, the C allele at rs12821256 was associated with blond hair pigmentation.
- TT
- Darker range
- CT
- Middle
- CC
- Lighter range
Modest effect
What the study found
In the study, each copy went with hair colour score on a four step scale from blond (lowest) to black, red hair excluded about 0.18 points lower on average.
European-American women and men in the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, red-haired participants excluded · Table 6 (rs12821256, hair color column) and Methods (hair colour coded 1 blond to 4 black)Genome-wide association studies identify several new loci associated with pigmentation traits and skin cancer risk in European Americans (Zhang et al., 2013)
- Evidence
- Functional enhancer experiments and association
- Who was studied
- European populations
1000 Genomes Project
How common each genotype is
| Region | TTDarker range | CTMiddle | CCLighter range |
|---|---|---|---|
| All regions2,504 people | 94% | 6% | <1% |
| Africa661 people | >99% | <1% | Not seen |
| The Americas347 people | 95% | 5% | Not seen |
| East Asia504 people | All | Not seen | Not seen |
| Europe503 people | 77% | 21% | 1% |
| South Asia489 people | 97% | 3% | Not seen |
Among the 2,504 people of the 1000 Genomes Project, in five world regions. These percentages describe groups of people, never anyone’s chance of having a trait.
Ancient genomes
Through time
How often the studied letter was read in ancient people, era by era, in the region chosen.
Region
Europe
| Before farmingbefore 6500 BC | 4%2 of 53 copies read |
|---|---|
| First farmers6500 to 3000 BC | 2%11 of 728 copies read |
| Bronze Age3000 to 1200 BC | 4%23 of 610 copies read |
| Iron Age and Antiquity1200 BC to AD 600 | 6%53 of 829 copies read |
| Middle AgesAD 600 to 1500 | 9%46 of 524 copies read |
| Today1000 Genomes | 12%122 of 1,006 copies |
Neanderthal and Denisovan genomes
- Altai Neanderthal
- No copies
- Vindija Neanderthal
- No copies
- Chagyrskaya Neanderthal
- No copies
- Denisovan
- No copies
Neanderthals and Denisovans carried the other letter, so this letter is younger than our split with them.
rs12821256
The marker
- Gene or region
- KITLG
- Marker
- rs12821256
- Location
- Chromosome 12 · GRCh37 89,328,335 · GRCh38 88,934,558
- Letters studied
- C and T, with C as the studied allele
A DNA Traits report reads this marker in your raw DNA file and shows which of the three genotypes is yours, with how common it is. It counts the copies of the studied allele; it does not measure the trait itself.
- Marker
- KITLG · rs12821256
- Location
- Chromosome 12 · GRCh37 89,328,335 · GRCh38 88,934,558
- Studied allele
- C
- Published statistic
- beta 0.18 (SE 0.02) per T allele toward darker hair, P 6.8e-19 (Zhang 2013 Table 6), so 0.18 points lighter per C; OR 1.9 to 2.4 per blond allele for blond versus brown (Sulem 2007, cited by Guenther 2014); in transgenic mice the blond enhancer variant lowered Kitlg expression by about 21% (Guenther 2014) (Table 6 (rs12821256, hair color column) and Methods (hair colour coded 1 blond to 4 black))
- 1000 Genomes Project phase 3, people with 0, 1 and 2 copies
- All regions 2352 / 145 / 7 · Africa 658 / 3 / 0 · The Americas 329 / 18 / 0 · East Asia 504 / 0 / 0 · Europe 388 / 108 / 7 · South Asia 473 / 16 / 0
Limits
What it cannot tell you
This enhancer marker explains part of European blond-hair variation, not your current hair shade.
A molecular basis for classic blond hair color in Europeans (Guenther et al., 2014)The same topic
More in Appearance
- Eye pigmentation
- Red hair association
- Hair shape
- Hair thickness association
- Skin pigmentation
- Freckling association
- Hair greying association
- Eyebrow thickness association
- Beard density association
- Unibrow association
- Nose bridge breadth association
- Nose wing breadth association
- Nose protrusion association
- Nose tip angle association
- Chin protrusion association
- Earlobe attachment association
- Earlobe size association
- Ear ridge folding association
- Male pattern hair loss
- Male pattern hair loss, HDAC9 marker
- Male pattern hair loss, EBF1 marker
- Male pattern hair loss, WNT10A marker
- Hair lightness, SLC24A4 marker
- Blond hair, TPCN2 marker
- Hair lightness, SLC45A2 marker
- Red hair, ASIP region marker
- Hair lightness, HERC2 marker
- Hair colour, IRF4 marker
- Hair shape, WNT10A marker
- Hair shape, PADI3 marker
- Hair shape, HOXC13 marker
- Hair shape, GATA3 region marker
- Hair shape, FRAS1 marker
- Hair shape, LCE3E marker
- Straight hair, EDAR marker
- Eyebrow thickness, FOXD1 region marker
- Eyebrow thickness, FOXL2 marker
- Shovel-shaped incisors
- Finger length ratio (SMOC1 marker)
- Finger length ratio (LDAH marker)
- Finger length ratio (SALL1 marker)
- Finger length ratio (OLA1 marker)
- Nose root position
- Nose wing breadth (PAX1 marker)
- Earlobe attachment (PAX9 marker)
- Earlobe attachment (KIAA1217 marker)
- Earlobe attachment (MRPS22 marker)
- Fingerprint whorls (ADAMTS9 marker)
- Fingerprint whorls (EVI1 marker)
- Fingerprint whorls (SALL3 marker)
- Green or hazel eyes
- Eye pigmentation (TYR)
- Freckling (TYR)
- Skin pigmentation (OCA2 H615R)
- Freckling (PPARGC1B)
- Freckling (HSPA12A)
- Freckling (BNC2)
- Freckling (EMX2)
- Freckling (EIF6, ASIP region)
- Skin lightness (OCA2 A481T)
- Eye pigmentation (TSPAN10)
- Eye pigmentation (TYRP1)
- Eye pigmentation (SLC24A4)
- Eye pigmentation (SIK1)
- Eye pigmentation (OCA2 exon ten)
Free, once per account
See your own two letters.
Upload the raw DNA file you already have. Your report reads this marker and every other card studied for you, each with its evidence and its limits.