Why do cats have spots and spots on their fur?

Scientists point out that the 70-year-old theory, which explains patterns that occur in nature, is valid for understanding why cats have spots or stripes on their fur. Interestingly, even though the theory was already in place, the reason remained a mystery for a long time.

Although biologists have identified cells in the follicle where hair grows as a source of black, brown, yellow, and red pigments that are fur of colored cats, they had no idea “when and where to make color patterns” The process took place. ” . He has declared Gregory Barsh, Genetics dell’Hudson-Institute of Biotechnology, Alabama, United States of America, Journal of Science.

However, some clues were later found. In 1952 computer pioneer Alan Turing suggested that molecules that inhibit and activate each other could form periodic patterns in nature if they were diffused through tissues at varying rates. As he explains Elizabeth Penny in Science.

Thirty years later, other scientists have applied their theory to develop a hypothesis about how I am color swatches During development in the forest. They found that active molecules give color to the cell, but they also produce inhibitors that spread faster than activation and can inhibit pigment production. Penis noted that in 2019 the idea turned out to be true in colors. Dracula FamilyAlso called monkey orchid.

Despite the advances, scientists still have not discovered the key and do not know how Burma’s team found an answer in two known proteins until 2020 as to how fur color evolved in mammals: Wnt and DKK4. .

The team found that the Wnt and DKK4 molecules act as catalysts and catalysts, respectively, in cats. On dark skin, they are present in approximately equal amounts. According to Penis, in light regions, the fast-growing DKK4 protein harbors Wnt, disrupting the production of pigments and thus forming bands, as predicted by Turing’s theory.

The fact that simple interactions between molecules can explain the variation of wool color in mammals is an example of nature’s economy. This suggests that the same molecule and pathway can be reused to produce very different structures and complex elements of vertebrate anatomy at different scales, “he told Science Dennis hayden, Developmental biologist at the Plant Institute, Scotland.