Gene breakthrough in migraine study
FIRST ON 7: Researchers have identified a group of genes that make people more prone to migraines.
The scientists, including a team from Brisbane, say their findings should lead to new and effective treatments.
A migraine is a common brain disorder that affects 14 per cent of adults but it is not known what causes them.
Experts at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research were part of the international study which analysed DNA samples from 100,000 people.
This information was then used to compare the genes of people who suffer from migraines with those who have never had one.
Every time Maria Balzono gets a migraine her life is put on hold for up to three days.
She has been treated in hospital, tried medication and physiotherapy but nothing has managed to ease the pain.
She says: "It's terrible when I feel a headache coming on, I start to panic sometimes I think oh gosh, I know what's ahead of me."
Dr Dale Nyholt was part of the world's largest study into the crippling condition.
"A lot of people around the world are working really hard to try find out what's underlying their migraine headaches," he said.
The study identified five genetic regions linked to the onset of migraines and that those who have them are a target.
Experts will now study the genes they suspect are to blame, in the hope of developing a new treatment to reduce the severity of migraines or prevent them completely.
This study is published in Nature Genetics and can be viewed here.
