Scientists have finally solved the mystery of how fingerprints are formed.
Fingerprints, which are the curved and raised lines on the tips of your fingers, are formed before birth. These roots begin to spread from the three points of each finger; From under a nail, from the middle of the finger and from the area closest to the tip of the finger.
Scientists knew that fingerprints are created by the formation of small depressions under the skin, and these depressions go down, at the bottom of which cells grow rapidly and they also continue to grow downward. But after a few weeks the cells stop moving downward. Instead, they begin to move upwards and push the skin upwards, creating raised lines on the skin.
However, no one knew what it was that determined the final design of the fingerprints. To find out which molecules might be involved in pore growth, the researchers looked at another component of the skin that grows not only on top of the skin, but also downwards, and that’s hair.
The team compared the growth of hair cells to emerging fingerprints. The scientists hypothesized that the same molecules were responsible for the downward movement of both. Both contain certain types of molecules that transmit signals between cells.
Both hair and fingerprints contain molecules called WNT, EDAR, and BMP. WNT increases the production of cells that help the skin grow. WNT also directs cells to produce EDAR, which further increases WNT activity.
BMP on the other hand prevents all these operations. Where BMP is high, skin cell production stops and thus areas with high BMP remain superficial between the knuckles.
