News

New interactions involving the FMRP and p53 proteins were found to play an important part in neural defects associated with fragile X syndrome, a new mouse study shows. The study, “Dysregulation and restoration of homeostatic network…

Neurotrope announced it will initiate a clinical trial in children with fragile X syndrome. The company, which will conduct the trial in collaboration with the The Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, in Wilmington, Delaware, have not given a date for the study’s start. The trial will assess the safety and…

Poor “social gaze” skills, or an inability to make and hold eye contact during a social interaction, is a common problem for fragile X syndrome patients but can be improved with  standard behavioral training, according to the results of a proof-of-concept study. The study, “Improving social gaze behavior in fragile…

The production of several large proteins from stored messenger RNAs (mRNAs) — molecules that contain instructions to make proteins — is defective in fragile X syndrome and most likely other autism spectrum disorders as well, according to a fruit fly study. The study, “Fragile X mental retardation 1…

The majority of Iranian patients with fragile X syndrome (FXS) may have a delayed diagnosis, a small study suggests. These results highlight the need to increase awareness among health professionals and the general population. The small report, “Complications in Diagnosis of Susceptible Cases of Fragile X Syndrome,”…

A mouse model of fragile X syndrome reinforces the abnormal sleep structure observed in fragile X patients, revealing likely adverse consequences for memory processes, a study has found. The study, “Abnormal Sleep Architecture and Hippocampal Circuit Dysfunction in a Mouse Model of Fragile X Syndrome,” was published in the…

Using a gene editing tool, researchers successfully reactivated the FMR1 gene — which is silenced in fragile X syndrome patients — in human stem cells. The study, “Targeted reactivation of FMR1 transcription in fragile X syndrome embryonic stem cells” was published in Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience. Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is…

A small molecule called IGS-1.76 that inhibits excessive interactions between nerve cells could potentially be developed as a therapeutic candidate for fragile X syndrome, a study shows. The study, “Deciphering the Inhibition of the Neuronal Calcium Sensor 1 and the Guanine Exchange Factor Ric8a with a Small Phenothiazine Molecule…

A new pharmacological strategy was able to minimize many cognitive and behavioral defects in mice with fragile X syndrome. Researchers now believe this may be a promising therapeutic strategy for this disease and other brain disorders. The findings from the study, “Isoform-selective phosphoinositide 3-kinase inhibition ameliorates a broad range…

Zynerba Pharmaceuticals’ investigative therapy ZYN002 — a pharmaceutically produced cannabidiol (CBD) gel — was seen to significantly improve behavioral symptoms in children and adolescents with fragile X syndrome (FXS), according to new Phase 2 clinical data. “These data are consistent and compelling, and suggest that ZYN002 may have a clinically…