Genetics of human face begin to reveal underlying profile
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Image: Julie White, Penn State
Genetics of human face begin to reveal underlying profile
A ndrea Elyse Messer
December 07, 2020
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. The genetics behind the shape of the human face are difficult to decipher, but now an international team of researchers has connected specific genetic signals with specific areas of the face. They not only can see the signals of normal facial features in the genome, but also hope their work can shed light on craniofacial malformations such as cleft lip and palate.
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LONDON, Dec. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ Elsevier, a global leader in research publishing and information analytics, is pleased to announce that Dr. Hannah Valantine, Professor of Medicine at Stanford University and former National Institutes of Health (NIH) Chief Scientific Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity has been appointed to the company s independent Inclusion and Diversity Advisory Board.
Dr. Valantine will join nine other distinguished research leaders who are members of the Elsevier Inclusion and Diversity Board. Established in March 2020 and chaired by Kumsal Bayazit, Elsevier CEO, and Dr. Richard Horton, Editor-in-Chief of
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Lancet, the Board aims to create a more equitable research ecosystem through standards, best practices and initiatives that support long-term, measurable change. These include actions to bring about greater balance in gender, racial, ethnic and geographic representation in academic research, for exam
New research connects specific genetic signals with specific areas of the human face.
The researchers can see the signals of normal facial features in the genome, and also hope their work can shed light on craniofacial malformations such as cleft lip and palate.
“The face tells the outside world about your identity, who you are related to, where your ancestors come from, and even your health,” says Julie White, graduate student in anthropology at Penn State. “But we only know a fraction of how faces are formed. The facial structure comes together in early development, and if it doesn’t go right, you can get a cleft palate or other problem, but we don’t fully know what controls those processes.”