Short-sightedness - a common eye condition which makes it difficult to focus on distant objects - typically starts in childhood and can cause vision to worsen quickly. Also known as myopia, it is thought to be genetic: the child of two nearsighted parents has a 50% chance of being nearsighted as well. In the United Kingdom almost one-third of people suffer from short-sightedness . Now a team of researchers led by King's College London experts has found a gene believed to have an important part in eye development which could lead to the development of a cure for childhood short-sightedness .

The gene, called RASGRF1, is believed to cause the eyeball to overgrow, which makes distant objects appear blurred or fuzzy. A drug in the form of eye drops that could prevent the eyeball from growing too large could be ready in 10 years and although the drops would not be helpful to adults they could provide a cure for childhood short-sightedness .The KCL researchers examined the DNA of more than 4,000 British twins and confirmed their findings by looking at the genes of an additional 13,000 British, Dutch and Australian people. Dr. Pirro Hysi, lead author of the study states "we have known for many years that the most important risk factor for being short-sighted is having parents who are short-sighted  and for the first time we are identifying genes that may be involved in passing on this susceptibility."

Short-sightedness typically starts in children between the ages of 6 and 12, according to WebMD. The eyes usually deteriorate from the condition, but stop getting worse in females by age 14 to 16 and in males by their mid 20s. Until a gene-based therapy becomes available, one way of providing a cure for childhood short-sightedness  is to fit children with overnight contact lenses which have been shown in clinical trials as being effective in halting the development of myopia.