Mutations in the human homologue of yeast ELP1, IKBKAP/hELP1, have been shown to cause Familial Dysautonomia (FD), a genetic disorder primarily affecting the sensory and autonomic nerve systems (Anderson et al., 2001; Slaugenhaupt et al., 2001; Gold‐von Simson and Axelrod, 2006). This evidence concerns the gene ELP1 and hereditary disease.