Name: LInda
Status: other
Age: 40s
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: 2000-2001
Question:
My husband and I both have hazel eyes. Our 13 y/o son also
has hazel eyes and our 10 y/o daughter has dark brown eyes. Our son has
stated that his science teacher says this is impossible because we (my
husband and I) both have recessive genes. Is she right?
Replies:
I have never heard that hazel is recessive. We actually know a little more
about how eye color is inherited now. Most traits are not just a result of
single genes. We were always taught that brown eyes is dominant to blue
(usually no mention of gray, hazel, etc.) and that if a child inherits two
blue genes, the eyes will be blue. But is there only one color of blue? If
you line up 10 people with blue eyes, you probably will have 10 different
shades of blue! So it is probably more likely that many genes determine eye
color. So I wouldn't worry.
Van Hoeck
Eye color has been deternmined to be the result of at least 8 genes. This does
include a number of genes that modify eye color either by color tinting or
by the iris patterns that is talked about so much that seems to be like finger
prints. This means that eye color is not a simple topic any longer.
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