SUPERCILIARY UPSWEEP OR TENTED EYEBROWS - A DISTINCT MENDELIAN TRAIT

Facial appearance is influenced by the anatomic relationship of the ey ebrows and eyelids. Anatomic variants may characterize members of a pe digree and thus constitute a family mark. We studied three white famil ies with circumscribed upward slanting eyebrows. In one pedigree the f amily mark was inherited over four generations, suggesting an autosoma l dominant inheritance. In the other two families the eyebrow variatio n was documented in three members over two generations, compatible wit h an autosomal dominant mode of transmission. In two families the expr ession of the trait varied in the form of both bilateral and unilatera l involvement. No diseases or malformations were associated with this eyebrow anomaly.