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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: clinical trials

May 2023
Illustration of hybrid objects: part light bulb, part lab vial, some in blue and some in red to signify null and replicated results.

Null and Noteworthy: Arbaclofen results; another oxytocin edition

by  /  17 May 2023

New data from clinical trials of arbaclofen and oxytocin underscore the murkiness of null results. Plus, researchers seek clarity on the neurodevelopmental effects of oxytocin during childbirth.

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Photograph of a white man in a green sweater sitting on a yellow sofa near a large window.

Flawed protocol for levodopa clinical trial brings retractions

by  /  9 May 2023

The retracted studies mar hope for the drug’s use in depression.

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April 2023
Illustration of a sheet of red and white pills, with the red pills arranged in the form of a question mark.

Going on Trial: Serotonin drug; psilocybin phase 2; placebo response data

by  /  28 April 2023

This month’s issue of the Going on Trial newsletter explores why it’s more fun to have a beer with friends than by yourself — and how that informs an ongoing clinical trial for autism.

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An illustration of a scientist on a stage with a giant pill bottle that has been chopped in half.

Company on brink takes psilocybin to trial for fragile X syndrome

by  /  25 April 2023

The phase 2A trial has its detractors despite positive animal results and is being sponsored by a company that is struggling financially.

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Illustration of a room with DNA sequence wallpaper and three doors leading to abstract new environments.

The future of autism therapies: A conversation with Lilia Iakoucheva and Derek Hong

by  /  14 April 2023

If a therapy for autism’s core traits makes it to market, it will likely take one of three forms, the researchers say.

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Long-tailed macaque in the canopy of a fruiting strangler fig tree, surrounded by ripening figs. Gunung Palung National Park, Borneo.

RNA therapy restores gene function in monkeys modeling Angelman syndrome

by  /  7 April 2023

The result raises hopes for an ongoing clinical trial in people — and offers fresh insight into the biology of imprinting and the UBE3A antisense transcript.

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March 2023
Illustration of a single patient in a clinical trial sitting on a bed in a glitchy, imperfectly rendered room.

Lessons from n-of-1 trials: A conversation with Joseph Gleeson

by  /  30 March 2023

Some conditions are too rare for conventional drug trials, leading some scientists to test bespoke treatments in single participants. Gleeson discusses the merits — and limitations — of these tiny trials.

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A hand reaches from above to add a pill to a stack that is resting against the x-axis of a graph.

Going on Trial: Trofinetide approval for Rett; n-of-1 ASO therapies; cord-blood deals

by  /  30 March 2023

This month’s issue of the Going on Trial newsletter examines personalized therapies for rare conditions, Acadia’s new drug for Rett syndrome and developments in a cord-blood program, among other autism-related drug trial news.

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February 2023
Illustration of a sheet of red and white pills, with the red pills arranged in the form of a question mark.

Going on Trial: Orphan drugs; CBD; bumetanide

by  /  28 February 2023

This month’s newsletter takes a close look at the orphan drug program in the United States, several cannabis-based therapies and a secondary analysis of bumetanide, among other new developments in autism-related drug trials.

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Illustration of a series of pills in petri dishes laid out to look like a descending line graph.

Biotech downturn hurts companies targeting autism-linked conditions

by  /  23 February 2023

After a year of intense growth, funding for biotech is in decline. The result is layoffs and program cuts — and maybe some innovation.

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