Teach Effectively!

Gül Dölen and Mark Baer
Photo by Donna Coveney

Professor Mark Baer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who studies how brains change as a result of experience, and his colleagues have identified bio-chemical factors (mGluR5 and FMRP) that, when re-balanced in mice bred to model Fragile-X syndrome, correct multiple defects associated with mental retardation and Autism. Here’s a snippet from the MIT press release:

Researchers at MIT’s Picower Institute for Learning and Memory have corrected key symptoms of mental retardation and autism in mice.

The work, which will be reported in the Dec. 20 issue of Neuron, indicates that a certain class of drugs could have the same effect in humans. These drugs are not yet approved by the FDA, but will soon be entering into clinical trials.

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