JOURNAL ARTICLE

Why don't identical twins have the same fingerprints? New study provides clues.

  • Published In: Sciencemag.org, 2023. P. N.PAG 1 of 3

  • Database: Applied Science & Technology Source Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Asher, Claire 3 of 3

Abstract

WNT appears to stimulate cell growth to create raised bumps in the outer layer of the skin, whereas BMP suppresses cell growth to form grooves. Fingerprints form relatively early in fetal development, starting around the 13th week of gestation with the formation of indentations in the fingertips called primary ridges. For example, when researchers knocked out the WNT pathway, their digits formed no ridges at all, whereas knocking out the BMP pathway made the ridges wider. [Extracted from the article]

Additional Information

  • Source:Sciencemag.org. 2023/02, pN.PAG
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Social Sciences and Humanities
  • Publication Date:2023
  • Accession Number:161794682
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Sciencemag.org is the property of American Association for the Advancement of Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Looking to go deeper into this topic? Look for more articles on EBSCOhost.