New Department of Defense Grant to Study Fragile X Syndrome in Human Cells
Xinyu Zhao, PhD, and Anita Bhattacharyya, PhD, will partner on research over the next four years to better understand the molecular underpinnings behind the diversity of FXS symptoms and how that diversity may inform the search for effective therapies.
September 29, 2022Cancer drug may be treatment option for fragile X syndrome
A newer cancer drug may also be a treatment option for a leading intellectual and developmental disability. Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability.
May 13, 2022Celebrando los diez años de participación en investigación de la familia Manlick
English Pensamientos de gratitud: la familia Manlick Por Emily Leclerc, Escritora Científica, Waisman Center James Manlick irá al baile de bienvenida de la escuela este año y simplemente no puede contener su emoción. Una gran …
February 6, 2022Celebrating the Manlick family’s ten years of research participation
James Manlick is going to homecoming this year and he simply can’t contain his excitement. A huge smile lights up his face as he talks about the dance.
February 6, 2022Schizophrenia: Illuminating a potential treatment and gene regulation
A new study from the lab of Waisman investigator Xinyu Zhao brings us one step closer to identifying treatments for psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia (SCZ) and illuminates the role of a specific gene in regulating the disorder.
April 29, 2021Artificial intelligence can accelerate clinical diagnosis of fragile X syndrome
An analysis of electronic health records for 1.7 million Wisconsin patients revealed a variety of health problems newly associated with fragile X syndrome.
April 9, 2021Inside Waisman: Meet Lindsay McCary
As a third year graduate student in school psychology at the University of South Carolina, Lindsay McCary, PhD, was looking for a new advisor to help her with her dissertation. At the time, Jane Roberts, PhD, had just joined the Department of Psychology and had some data available on younger children with the genetic disorder fragile X syndrome (FXS). McCary was immediately fascinated by the new professor’s research because it integrated both behavioral and physiological data to examine an individual’s observable characteristics.
September 9, 2020Improved technique illuminates fragile X protein
Researchers at the Waisman Center made a significant step in understanding the function of a specific protein, FMR1, whose absence causes fragile X syndrome, or FXS. Waisman investigators Xinyu Zhao, PhD, and Anita Bhattacharyya, PhD, with research associate Meng Li, published their paper “Identification of FMR1-regulated molecular networks in human neurodevelopment” in the March issue of the journal Genome Research.
April 9, 2020Five language outcome measures evaluated for intellectual disabilities studies
A multi-university team of researchers found that expressive language sampling (ELS) can be useful in measuring outcomes in clinical trials targeting fragile X syndrome (FXS). According to their study, ELS, a set of procedures for collecting and analyzing spoken language in natural verbal interactions, yielded five language-related outcome measures that may be useful for treatment studies in intellectual disabilities, especially FXS.
March 25, 2020Electronic records pin broad set of health risks on genetic premutation
It was long believed the FMR1 premutation — an excessive number of trinucleotide repeats in the FMR1 gene — had no direct effect on the people who carry it. Until recently, the only recognized effect on the carriers of the flawed gene was the risk of having offspring with fragile X syndrome, a rare but serious form of developmental disability.
August 21, 2019Cell component breakdown suggests possible treatment for multiple neural disorders
UW-Madison research published today (Feb. 11, 2019) reveals how one mutation causes fragile X, the most common inherited intellectual disability. “Fragile X syndrome has been studied as a model of intellectual disability because in theory it’s comparatively simple,” says senior author Xinyu Zhao, a professor of neuroscience in the Waisman Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
February 11, 2019Using artificial intelligence for a big impact on neurodevelopmental research
Arezoo Movaghar earned her master’s degree in computer science and artificial intelligence. She built models based on the plentiful data found in medical records. So, when she came to UW–Madison as a PhD student and joined a research group, it surprised Movaghar to find out just how much data researchers in other fields collect.
June 29, 2018- More Fragile X Syndrome posts
Advancing knowledge of human development, developmental disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases.