People with blue eyes have one thing in common

What do Jared Leto, Brad Pitt, Taylor Swift and Daniel Radcliffe all have in common?

Well, in addition to being rich and famous, they're all technically related.

According to Science Daily, people with blue eyes (including our randomly chosen celebs) share a single, common ancestor.

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen say they've tracked down a genetic mutation responsible for blue eyes which took place between 6000 and 10 000 years ago.

Professor Hans Eiberg from the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine told Science Daily:

Originally, we all had brown eyes, but a genetic mutation affecting the OCA2 gene in our chromosomes resulted in the creation of a “switch,” which literally “turned off” the ability to produce brown eyes.

The gene Professor Eiberg is talking about is responsible for a protein, which in-turn is responsible for the production of melanin. It's the melanin that gives colour to our hair, skin and eyes.

Blue-eyed people only have a small amount of melanin in their eyes, and it's because of this, researchers concluded that they share a common ancestor.

They have all inherited the same switch at exactly the same spot in their DNA

He added.

Just like freckles, beauty spots or baldness, the blue eye gene isn't a 'bad' or negative mutation.

Professor Eiberg explained:

It simply shows that nature is constantly shuffling the human genome, creating a genetic cocktail of human chromosomes and trying out different changes as it does so.”

That being said; if you're in a romantic situation and you're staring into your date's big blue eyes, calling them a mutation might not be the most romantic move.

HT Science Daily

More: Scientists say Pacific Islanders have DNA from unknown human ancestors

More: The DNA project that could make a life-or-death difference

More: Why we bite our nails