Fragile X symptoms reversed in adult mice

A study published in the April 12 issue of Neuron has found that a newly-developed compound can reverse many of the symptoms associated with Fragile X syndrome (FXS). The paper reports that FXS correction can occur in adult mice with established symptoms. FXS is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability and a leading cause of autism. Using an mGlu5 inhibitor called CTEP on a mouse model of FXS, the researchers set out to examine whether pharmacologic inhibition of mGlu5 could reverse FXS symptoms in mature mice. "We found that even when treatment with CTEP was started in adult mice, it reduced a wide range of FXS symptoms, including learning and memory deficits and auditory hypersensitivity, as well as morphological changes and signaling abnormalities characteristic of the disease," Lothar Lindemann, who led the study, said in a press release.