Hitler had genetic sexual disorder that causes micro-penis, new DNA study finds
An investigation into Adolf Hitler's DNA has found the dictator may have had a rare sexual developmental disorder, as well as some neurodivergent conditions.
The new research comes as part of an upcoming Channel 4 documentary, Hitler's DNA: Blueprint of a Dictator, which aims to look into the possibility of whether 'his genes played a part in influencing his psychology and behaviour'.
The documentary also hopes to debunk theories surrounding Hitler, such as his having Jewish ancestry.
The filmmakers spent many years putting the documentary together by working with world-renowned experts using innovative science and technology to examine an old piece of blood-stained cloth from the sofa on which the German dictator had taken his own life in 1945.
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Development executive at Blink Films, Lesley Davies, told Deadline that the analysis had to be 'the most rigorous it could be', and that she’d spent years developing the documentary.
She added: "When we got the match, and when knew that it was actually Hitler’s blood, that’s when the real science had to start, because then you had to confirm, and reconfirm and reconfirm that match multiple times to make sure that all the disease profiling is based on really solid work."
Professor Turi King, a geneticist with an expertise in ancient and forensic DNA, revealed that the blood stain provided evidence of a rare condition known as Kallmann Syndrome.
"Based on these results, particularly with the Kallmann syndrome, if [Hitler] had been able to look at his own DNA, without the knowledge of a geneticist, and as if it was somebody that he was making a decision about whether or not to send to the gas chambers, he almost certainly would have sent himself," she further explained.
Meanwhile, Alex Kay, an expert on Nazi Germany at the University of Potsdam, who also worked on the documentary, said that this revelation could potentially explain why Hilter 'was so uncomfortable around women throughout his life, or why he probably never entered into intimate relations with women', adding: "But now we know that he had Kallmann Syndrome, this could be the answer we’ve been looking for."
What is Kallmann syndrome?
According to the NHS, Kallmann syndrome is a subgroup of rare sexual developmental conditions called congenital hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.
The condition results in the 'absent or incomplete pubertal development and reproductive immaturity', which is caused by a variation in the gene responsible for developing reproductive organs, such as ovaries and testes.
Men with Kallmann syndrome can have a micropenis and undescended testes, which will be apparent from birth and often lead to a formal diagnosis.
MedlinePlus also says that it is more common in males than females, with an estimated rate of 1 in 30,000.
According to The Independent, a 1923 medical report, which was discovered in 2015, said that Hitler had an undescended testicle.
The research also claimed that he had a 1 in 10 chance of having a micropenis.
What other evidence did Hitler's DNA show?
The DNA analysis also indicated that Hitler may have had several neurodivergent conditions.
"Hitler was in the top 1 percent for autism, top 1 percent for schizophrenia and top 1 percent for bipolar: His score is at the highest end of the polygenic scores for each of these conditions," the programme makers said.
"While not diagnostic, the results indicate an increased genetic predisposition to each of these conditions."
However, the researchers made it clear that this was not meant to stigmatise anyone who has these conditions, as psychologist Professor Sir Simon Baron-Cohen said that 'behaviour is never 100 per cent genetic'.
"Associating Hitler’s extreme cruelty with people with these diagnoses risks stigmatising them, especially when the vast majority of people with these diagnoses are neither violent nor cruel, and many are the opposite," he said.
Hitler's DNA: Blueprint for a Dictator will air on Channel 4 this Saturday, 15 November at 9pm.
Emma Rosemurgey