The genetics of neuropsychiatric disorders

Neuropsychiatric disorders are complex conditions with poorly defined neurobiological bases. In recent years, there have been significant advances in our understanding of the genetic architecture of these conditions and the genetic loci involved. This review article describes historical attempts to identify susceptibility genes for neuropsychiatric disorders, recent progress through genome-wide association studies, copy number variation analyses and exome sequencing, and how these insights can inform the neuroscientific investigation of these conditions.