Despite significant challenges in the genetics of psychiatric and other complex disorders the sequencing of the human genome, together with a series of advances in biotechnology, are leading to new gene discoveries and the recognition of new disease mechanisms. As the pace of discovery accelerates, the geneticist’s tool box is also becoming richer and the future looks more promising than ever. The practice of psychiatry has long suffered from the limited information available on the biological basis of mental disorders, as compared to other conditions. This limitation is now coming to an end, and exciting new possibilities are on the horizon for psychiatry in the 21st century.
