(Special to The Root) — Skin color is one of our most important biological traits. Its many shades evolved as humans moved far and wide into regions with different intensities of sunlight. Skin color ...

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have discovered key insights into the molecular basis of skin color variations among African populations. Their findings, published in Nature Genetics, ...

Biology -- Skin's natural palette -- Original skin -- Out of the tropics -- Skin color in the modern world -- Shades of sex -- Skin color and health -- Society -- The discriminating primate -- ...

Human skin color is primarily determined by the pigment melanin, which includes eumelanin and pheomelanin. The amount, distribution and type of melanin also affect hair and eye color. Factors such as ...

A pigmentation gene first identified in zebrafish helps explain skin color differences between human European and African populations, a new Science study shows. A derived variant of the slc24a5 gene, ...

Sarah Tishkoff Of the University of Pennsylvania led a collaborative team of researchers who have discovered key insights into the molecular basis of skin color differences among Africans. “There’s so ...