Fathers pass on four times as many new genetic mutations as mothers – study

Faults in male DNA are a driver for rare childhood diseases, research suggests, with men passing on one new mutation for every eight months of age

Children inherit four times as many new mutations from their fathers than their mothers, according to research that suggests faults in the men's DNA are a driver for rare childhood diseases.

Researchers studied 14,000 Icelanders and found that men passed on one new mutation for every eight months of age, compared with women who passed on a new mutation for every three years of age.