Faulty gene to blame for Hitler-look cats
THEIR patchy facial fur has earned them a dedicated website and a vast web following.
But “cats that look like Hitler” can now genuinely attribute their awkward markings to genetics, rather than any far-right mindset.
Photographs of hundreds of clueless moggies have been shared online showcasing their unfortunately placed black fur splodges that have developed directly above their mouth at the bottom of their nose.
In turn, it has made them look like they have moustaches similar to World War II Nazi leader, Adolf Hitler.
The slight defect has for years left cat lovers scratching their heads as to how the marking ended up appearing on so many pets.
However, there is an answer: it is all down to faulty genes.
New scientific research has found the cats’ two-tone or “piebald” fur colour forms before they are born.
It occurs when their pigment cells fail to follow genetic instructions, leaving them with a single fur tone peppered by randomly placed markings.
The research findings hope to now advance the human understanding of serious medical conditions – such as holes in the heart – also caused by cell movements when developing in the womb.
Scientists at Bath and Edinburgh University discovered that piebald patterns are caused by a broken version of the “kit” gene, which reduces the rates at which pigment cells multiply.
When that rate slows down, there are not enough cells to cover all of the cat’s skin, leaving patches.
The researchers have now developed a mathematical model that can track cell movements that they now plan to use for further study into other conditions.
Professor Ian Jackson, of the University of Edinburgh, said: “It’s like diffusion – if you put a drop of milk in a cup of coffee that milk spreads through the whole cup of coffee. Eventually, the cells spread through the skin.”
The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications. – Daily Mail