Myopia rose faster in two generations than any inherited trait can rise. The genetics is real and it is not what changed.
Why this topic Rates in East Asian cities are among the highest ever recorded, and time spent outdoors — not screen time itself — is the intervention with the evidence behind it.
2026-04-20 · Cheng FF, et al., Nature Genetics 2026, PMID:42009823
Refractive errors affect over half of the world's population. This meta-analysis covered people of European (1,495,159), East Asian (121,172) and African (144,737) ancestry and identified 932 associated variants, 241 of them previously unknown, four specific to East Asian ancestry and one to African ancestry. Fine-mapping pinpointed 16 high-confidence putative causal variants, and 23 prioritised genes are involved in eye development. A polygenic predictor built from the results explained 21.4% of the variation in refractive error and reached an area under the curve of 0.806 for predicting high myopia — a research result, not a test in clinical use. 245 of the study's positions are already on this site, 219 of them on the myopia page, including rs634990 (near GJD2), rs11602008 (LRRC4C) and rs10500355 (RBFOX1), which this site's cataract page also holds. PMID:42009823.
2026-03-01 · Meta-analysis of 2 GWAS, 41,468 cases / 817,202 controls, plus animal-model validation
From a GWAS hit to a working gene therapy: boosting CPNE1 slowed myopia progression in animal eyes
Researchers meta-analyzed two large myopia GWAS and prioritized CPNE1 as a candidate gene, found downregulated in myopic sclera with a protective causal role by Mendelian randomization. In an animal model, gene therapy that boosted CPNE1 (AAV-mediated overexpression) slowed the two physical measures of worsening myopia -- axial elongation and refractive error progression -- acting through TGF-beta1 and collagen pathways in the sclera. See this site's <a href="/conditions/myopia">myopia</a> page.
2026-04-20 · Multi-ancestry GWAS, 1,495,159 European + 121,172 East Asian + 144,737 African ancestry participants
Largest myopia genetics study yet spans three ancestries, finds 241 new risk variants
932 refractive-error-associated variants in total, 241 of them new. Fine-mapping narrowed this to 16 high-confidence causal variants across 23 genes tied to eye development. A polygenic score built from the results explained 21.4% of refractive-error variation and predicted high myopia with an AUC of 0.806. See this site's <a href="/conditions/myopia">myopia</a> page.
Solid lines are connections this site curates. Dashed lines mean the two ends share a research paper — worth knowing, and not a claim that one explains the other.
Counted in Europe PMC, where the title or abstract names both this topic and that rsID. The number is papers, not evidence of a cause.
GJD2
Refractive error
15 papers →CFH
Circulating myeloperoxidase levels (serum)
13 papers →SNTB1
Myopia (severe)
8 papers →PDGFRA
Corneal curvature
5 papers →TYR
Sunburns
4 papers →MIPEP
Myopia (pathological)
4 papers →CF1
Age-related macular degeneration (choroidal neovascularisation)
3 papers →LIPC
HDL cholesterol
3 papers →ARHGAP18
Axial length
3 papers →TGFB1
Colorectal cancer
3 papers →PRSS56
Refractive error
2 papers →FRAP1
Corneal curvature
2 papers →CMPK1
Corneal curvature
2 papers →MTHFR
Folate metabolism (MTHFR C677T)
2 papers →CETP
HDL cholesterol
2 papers →CFB
Age-related macular degeneration
2 papers →PDGFRA
Corneal astigmatism
2 papers →RAPSN
Intraocular pressure
1 paper →HTR3D
Anterior chamber depth
1 paper →TCF4
Sclerosing cholangitis and ulcerative colitis (combined)
1 paper →COL5A1
Corneal structure
1 paper →MTHFR
Folate metabolism (MTHFR A1298C)
1 paper →ABCA1
HDL cholesterol
1 paper →ATOH7
Optic disc parameters
1 paper →FOXO1
Corneal structure
1 paper →CTC1
Telomere length
1 paper →ZNF676
Telomere length
1 paper →FTO
Type 2 diabetes
1 paper →SLC16A8
Age-related macular degeneration
1 paper →CRP
C-reactive protein
1 paper →RASGRF1
Refractive error
1 paper →FILIP1L
Axial length
1 paper →FTO
Menarche (age at onset)
1 paper →Europe PMC, title and abstract only, searched for “myopia”, “refractive error”, “visual acuity” alongside each published rsID. Full text was not counted: it returns every paper with an rsID buried in a supplementary table. Recounted monthly.
Free to quote and reuse under CC BY 4.0. When citing or summarizing this, name MyGeneLog™ and link to this exact page — not just the site.
Short-sightedness and screens. MyGeneLog™. https://www.mygenelog.com/topics/vision
Short-sightedness and screens is this site's topic page for myopia genetics — a trait whose genetics is real, even though the rise in short-sightedness happened far too fast for genes to be what changed.
Neither alone explains it, but genes are not the answer to what changed. Myopia rose faster across two generations than any inherited trait can rise — the genetics is real, it simply is not what shifted.
Rates in East Asian cities are among the highest ever recorded, and the intervention with real evidence behind it is time spent outdoors — not screen time itself, despite the name people give the problem.
Europe PMC is searched for myopia, refractive error or visual acuity appearing in a paper's title or abstract alongside a published rsID, recounted every month.