Researchers have probably found the first gene associated with gray hair, as per a search that involved hair types and genomes of over 6,000 people belonging to five Latin American nations.

They tracked down these populations as they are representative of a good mix of backgrounds, consisting of Europeans and their fair or curly hair, Native Americans and African-Americans and their traits dark and straight hair.

Many people are already aware that they are highly vulnerable to going gray at an early age in case they have witnessed older relatives with gray hair at early age. Kaustubh Adhikari, a research associate in cell and developmental biology at University College London said that the present study has more strongly backed the belief that graying is genetic.

Adhikari is the main author of the study appeared in the journal Nature Communications on Tuesday.

The hair color thief is IRF4, a gene that possibly acts like a cog in the machine in a cellular process that mixes out melanin pigment in the hair follicle. Gray color comes as follicles steadily run out of the pigment, giving hair its color, a process that takes place at different rates for distinct people.

He added that the researchers have made the relation between a particular variation in IRF4 and the gray hair characteristic exclusively in Europeans, considerably having a higher probability of premature graying as compared to people of other descent.

Adhikari said that the silver lining is the finding “that gives researchers further leads in what they can investigate if they want to develop a drug to prevent or delay hair graying”.

He added that in case more studies can validate the role played by this cellular pathway in graying, researchers may search proteins or enzymes that could be lacking in the pathway in those salt-and-pepper cases and probably look for a path to supplement them with a pill or cream. However, Adhikari mentioned that it will need some research.