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A new genetic link to baldness has been discovered which may explain why many men inherit hair loss from their fathers.

Two altered regions of DNA on one of the chromosomes that house the genes contribute to a more than sevenfold increased risk of male pattern baldness.

The nature of the variants is still a mystery but one of them may influence male hormone activity through a gene.

Previously the only genetic association with male baldness known was a variant on the female X chromosome. This risk factor is passed down the mother’s side of the family.

It may account for bald men taking after their maternal grandfathers, but baldness is also often passed from father to son. The new discovery could help researchers looking for ways to treat inherited male hair loss.

One of the scientists, Dr Tim Spector, of King’s College London, said: “Early prediction before hair loss starts may lead to some interesting therapies that are more effective than treating late stage hair loss.”

Colleague Dr Brent Richards, from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, said: “We’ve only identified a causes. Treating male pattern baldness will require more research. But, of course, the first step in finding a way to treat most conditions is to first identify the cause.”

Two separate international teams led by Dr Spector and Dr Axel Hillmer, from the University of Bonn in Germany, reported similar findings in the journal Nature Genetics.

Male pattern baldness, the most common form, causes hair to be lost in a well-defined pattern beginning above both temples. It results in a distinctive M-shaped hairline.

Estimates suggest that more than 80% of cases of male pattern baldness are hereditary. An estimated 14% of men are thought to carry the two chromosome 20 variants.

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