Genetics of Photosensitivity

As first brought to attention in 1962 by Watson and Marcus, photoparoxysmal responses are remarkably genetically determined traits. A journey of six decades followed this initial hypothesis, starting from the very basics; twin studies and family trees; through natural occurring and lab created animal models and continuing with exquisite contemporary molecular studies. During this journey, we have uncovered a close relationship between photosensitivity (PS) and genetic generalized epilepsies and rather weaker associations with many other epileptic and neurologic syndromes; we encountered some peculiar aspects such as the effect of gender and age on PS and discovered many genes and loci associated with PS. However, we still don’t have a single definitive answer for the genetic background of PS.