Gene for childhood baldness discovered

Scientists say they have pinned down a DNA mechanism that gives rise to a rare but distressing form of baldness that strikes before adulthood.

Flaws in a gene called U2HR are to blame for a condition called Maria Unna hereditary hypotrichosis (MUHH), named after the German trichologist who identified the problem.

Children with MUHH have sparse or no hair at birth, followed by wiry or coarse hair in childhood, which they progressively lose at puberty.