Researchers could create a "mugshot" of an individual by analyzing DNA left behind at a crime scene.
"By jointly modeling sex, genomic ancestry and genotype, the independent effects of particular alleles on facial features can be uncovered," the researchers said, a Penn State news release reported. "By simultaneously modeling facial shape variation as a function of sex and genomic ancestry along with genetic markers in craniofacial candidate genes, the effects of sex and ancestry can be removed from the model thereby providing the ability to extract the effects of individual genes."
Researchers included "sex and racial admixture" into their analyzation to learn how genes influence the facial features.
"We use DNA to match to an individual or identify an individual, but you can get so much more from DNA," Mark D. Shriver, professor of anthropology at Penn State, said in the news release. "Currently we can't go from DNA to a face or from a face to DNA, but it should be possible."
The researchers looked at people of varied mixed west African and European descent; they used statistical methods to look at how "sex, genomic ancestry and genes" affected the shape of the face and its features. They also looked at how genetic mutations caused facial deformation.
"Probably only [five] percent of genes show a difference between populations," Shriver said. "We are using different populations because they have had different environments and different social environments."
Other factors can affect appearance as well such as the "environment, the local temperatures, rainfall, [and] elevation," the news release reported.
"The environment and social environment are major driving factors in changing a whole set of genes that make up how a person looks," Peter Claes, postdoctoral researcher, research expert in morphometrics, Medical Imaging Research Center, KU Leuven, Belgium and first author on the paper, said in the news release.
The researchers hope their new method will allow them to be able to not only more efficiently solve crimes, but help them better-visualize human ancestors.
