Evolution of hair

Evolution of hair

A recent study by scientists from Medical University of Vienna traced the origins of hair to the common ancestor of mammals, birds and lizards that lived 310 million years ago. The study found chickens, lizards and humans all possessed a similar set of genes that was involved in the production of alpha keratin. In chickens and lizards, the α-keratin produced was found in their claws, but in mammals it was used to produce hair. The scientists involved were still searching for the mechanisms that allowed mammals to use the α-keratins of animal claws to produce hair.[1][2]

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