The cause of migraines are still unknown however in a study done by the University of California, San Francisco, a research team identified a genetic mutation that is strongly associated with a typical form of a migraine.

According to npr.org the study could not only help explain the links between sleep problems and migraines but it should also make it easier to find new drugs that can treat migraines.

The mutation is in the gene known as casein kinase I delta (CKIdelta). Apparently this is the first gene in which mutations have been shown to cause a very typical form of a migraine.

According to Science Daily, migraines affects 10 to 20 percent of all people, and causes "huge losses in productivity, not to mention immense suffering," said Louis J Ptáček, Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator.

The typical symptoms of a migraine include a pounding headache, lowered pain threshold, hypersensitivity to mild stimuli including sound and touch. The paper presents both clinical and basic scientific evidence that the mutation causes migraines.

In the study, the researchers first analyzed the genetics of two families in which migraines were common. The team found that a significant proportion of migraine sufferers in the families either had the mutation or were the offspring of a mutation carrier.

In the laboratory, the team demonstrated that the mutation affects the production of the casein kinase I delta enzyme, which carries out a number of vital functions in the brain and body.

Ptáček noted that all though this is a great discovery, this is just the beginning of pinpointing genetic mutations that cause migraines, "there are likely several, in different combinations in different people. This is simply the first one we've found."

The study was published on Wednesday May 1st in Science Translational Medicine.