Tooth agenesis involving one tooth occurs in up to 10% of Americans, but the severe form affecting multiple teeth — as seen in Graham's family — occurs in less than 0.5% of people.
This rarity likely stems from the mutation's location: a critical site in the KDF-1 gene that evolution has left virtually untouched. In addition to studying the gene in humans, the team looked at 421 animal species and discovered that no more than 10 species had evolved a different gene variant at this site.
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