The ABCC11 gene determines both the type of earwax a person has and their armpit odor. A change in a single spot in the DNA of this gene can cause the gene not to function.

People with a functioning ABCC11 gene have wet earwax and body odor, while those with the gene variant causing loss of function have dry earwax and little or no body odor.

Genetic variants that cause a loss-of-function of the ABCC11 gene are very common among East Asian populations (80-90% of the population), but fairly rare in other populations (1 – 3% of Caucasians).

So what exactly does this gene do?

The ABCC11 gene (ATP-binding cassette transporter sub-family C member 11) codes for a protein that is involved in transporting molecules across cellular membranes. It is involved in the transport of lipophilic compounds, bile acids, conjugated steroids, and the substance in apocrine sweat and in earwax, thus causing body odor and wet earwax. For people who have loss-of-function genetic variants, the transporter doesn’t work and doesn’t transfer the odor-causing lipids into your armpits.

Variants of this gene are also involved in resistance to antiviral and anticancer drugs.[ref]

The wet earwax allele was also associated with a higher risk of breast cancer in Japanese women, but not in women of European descent.[ref][ref]

Genetic Variants:

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ABCC11 gene:

Check your genetic data for rs17822931 (23andMe v4, v5; AncestryDNA): C/C: wet earwax, body odor, and normal colostrum[ref][ref]

C/T: wet earwax, somewhat less body odor

T/T: dry earwax, no body odor, and less colostrum Members: Your genotype for rs17822931 is —.

There was an interesting article in Scientific American a few years ago looking into the fact that those who genetically don’t have smelly pits often unnecessarily still wear deodorant. Other research showed that those with the ‘no body odor’ variant sometimes had other sources of body odor or social reasons for wearing deodorant.[ref]

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