  In a class of F-theory SU(5) GUTs the low energy chiral mass spectrum is
obtained from rank one fermion mass textures with a hierarchical structure
organised by U(1) symmetries embedded in the exceptional E_8 group. In these
theories chiral fields reside on matter `curves' and the tree level masses are
computed from integrals of overlapping wavefuctions of the particles at the
triple intersection points. This calculation requires knowledge of the exact
form of the wavefuctions. In this work we propose a way to obtain a reliable
estimate of the various quantities which determine the strength of the Yukawa
couplings. We use previous analysis of KK threshold effects to determine the
(ratios of) heavy mass scales of the theory which are involved in the
normalization of the wave functions. We consider similar effects from the
chiral spectrum of these models and discuss possible constraints on the
emerging matter content. In this approach, we find that the Yukawa couplings
can be determined solely from the U(1) charges of the states in the
`intersection' and the torsion which is a topological invariant quantity. We
apply the results to a viable SU(5) model with minimal spectrum which satisfies
all the constraints imposed by our analysis. We use renormalization group
analysis to estimate the top and bottom masses and find that they are in
agreement with the experimental values.
