View clinical trials related to Fragile X Syndrome.
Filter by:This study focuses on the therapeutic relevance of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system for the treatment of Fragile-X syndrome (FXS), the primary hereditary cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Most individuals with FXS have moderate to severe intellectual disability (ID), and caregivers are mainly concerned about aggressive behavior and anxiety problems. Since FXS individuals have a normal lifespan, the overall lifetime cost for the Canadian society of a single case is estimated at $1.2 to $4.7 millions reaching $18 billions for all FXS cases. There is no cure for FXS, as all clinical trials so far have been unsuccessful.FXS is caused by transcriptional silencing of the Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMR1) gene, making FXS a simple model to study ASD and ID pathophysiological mechanisms. Of those, neuronal hyperexcitability is largely recognized as a core deficit in FXS, and a critical therapeutic target for the disorder. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in FXS patients, our team provided the first direct evidence of Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor a (GABAa) dysfunctions in humans with this disorder and showed that this inhibitory deficit is linked with cortical hyperexcitability (PMID: 31748507). Concurrent lines of evidence suggest that stimulation of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system with the administration of Cannabidiol (CBD) could upregulate GABAergic function and correct inhibitory deficits presumed responsible for the neuropsychiatric phenotype of FXS. CBD has been shown to increase GABA concentration levels in the brains of healthy individuals, an effect that could help correct the hyperexcitability typically found in FXS. Thus, this trial aims to define the therapeutic potential of the eCB system for FXS, by measuring the impacts of oral CBD administration on the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter system of FXS patients, and the severity of the clinical phenotype.
This proposal focuses on the therapeutic relevance of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system for the treatment of Fragile-X syndrome (FXS), the primary hereditary cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Although most individuals with FXS have moderate to severe intellectual disability (ID), caregivers are mainly concerned about aggressive behavior and anxiety problems, hallmark features of the condition. Concurrent lines of evidence suggest that targeting the endocannabinoid (eCB) system by administration of cannabidiol (CBD) could upregulate GABAergic functions and correct inhibitory deficits presumed responsible for the neuropsychiatric phenotype of FXS. However, the eCB system and its effect on the brain remains unexplored in FXS patients. This clinical trial aims to define the therapeutic relevance of the eCB system for FXS using a multimodal neuroimaging approach to finely characterize the acute effects of oral CBD on the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter system (GABA) in a large cohort of FXS patients.
Cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) is present in the maternal blood from the early first trimester of gestation and makes up 5%-20% of the total circulating cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in maternal plasma. Its presence in maternal plasma has allowed development of noninvasive prenatal diagnosis for single-gene disorders (SGD-NIPD). This can be performed from 9 weeks of amenorrhea and offers an early, safe and accurate definitive diagnosis without the miscarriage risk associated with invasive procedures. One of the major difficulties is distinguishing fetal genotype in the high background of maternal cfDNA, which leads to several technical and analytical challenges. Besides, unlike noninvasive prenatal testing for aneuploidy, NIPD for monogenic diseases represent a smaller market opportunity, and many cases must be provided on a bespoke, patient- or disease-specific basis. As a result, implementation of SGD-NIPD remained sparse, with most testing being delivered in a research setting. The present project aims to take advantage of the unique French collaborative network to make SGD-NIPD possible for theoretically any monogenic disorder and any family.
The goal of this study is to identify which brain regions are active during speech-in-noise perception, as well as how those regions interact. The investigators are studying brain activation during speech-in-noise in autism and controls as well as individuals with Fragile X Syndrome. The main question[s] it aims to answer are: 1) How does the brain's response to background noise affect a person's ability to understand speech? 2) Can visual cues improve hearing in background noise? Participants will complete the following: - hearing tests - cognitive and behavioral measures - questionnaires about their symptoms - both passive and active hearing tasks while brain activity is recorded with a neuroimaging cap Results will be compared between individuals with autism with and without Fragile X Syndrome as well as individuals without autism.
There are currently no approved medications for the treatment of anxiety in children and youth with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), both common and rare. Sertraline, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, has extensive evidence to support its use in children's and youth with anxiety but not within NDDs. More research is needed to confirm whether or not sertraline could help improve anxiety in children and youth with common and rare neurodevelopmental conditions. This is a pilot study, in which we plan to estimate the effect size of reduction in anxiety of sertraline vs. placebo. across rare and common neurodevelopmental disorders, and determine the best measure(s) to be used as a primary transdiagnostic outcome measure of anxiety, as well as diagnosis specific measures in future, larger-scale clinical trials of anxiety in NDDs.
The purpose of this research is to determine if saliva samples can be used as an alternate sample type to test for fragile X. By using saliva instead of blood, it would be easier for patients to have fragile X testing.