Todd, Peter Archives • Fragile X Research

How Promising is CRISPR for Fragile X?

Dave Bjork Research Updates • Todd, Peter August 14, 2018August 15, 2018CRISPR, FXTAS, mGluR, PSD-95

Dave Bjork, Director of Community Relations, recently sat down with Peter Todd, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology in the University of Michigan Medical School. Dr. Todd was recently awarded a FRAXA Research Grant for gene reactivation with the use of CRISPR. In this interview he tells us about CRISPR in Fragile X research, how realistic is it that it could turn the Fragile X gene back on, and if it can really be a cure for Fragile X.

Fragile X Research Impacted by a Small Group of Thoughtful, Committed Citizens

FRAXA Research Foundation Community • Todd, Peter August 7, 2018August 7, 2018CRISPR

Theirs was an effort by a small group of thoughtful, committed members of the Fragile X Association of Michigan (FXAM) to be sure. The entire project took months! But it was hard work well worth the effort. After writing and revising (and revising), FXAM was awarded a $35,000 grant which the Michigan Fragile X group will now direct to Dr. Todd’s ongoing Fragile X research involving CRISPR!

Can CRISPR Cure Fragile X Syndrome?

Katie Clapp Genetic Rescue • Lee, Jeannie • Research Updates • Todd, Peter February 28, 2018June 4, 2018CRISPR, Rett syndrome

CRISPR/Cas9 was used by MIT researchers to remove the molecular tags that keep the mutant gene shut off in Fragile X syndrome neurons and resulted in some of them producing protein normally. Much work is being done right now, with exciting new discoveries coming at a fast and furious pace.

CRISPR Reactivation of the Fragile X Gene

J. Dora Levin Genetic Rescue • Research Updates • Todd, Peter • University of Michigan December 6, 2017August 6, 2018CRISPR, epigenetics

“We are trying to target the first event that goes wrong in Fragile X syndrome”, says Todd, “One reason our previous attempts to develop treatments for Fragile X syndrome have failed is that they’ve tried to target the downstream effects of losing the Fragile X protein. The protein does many things… bypassing all the functions that it normally takes care of has proven difficult from a pharmacologic perspective.”

In Their Own Words: Reports From the International Fragile X Workshop

FRAXA Research Foundation Cogram, Patricia • Contractor, Anis • Events Recap • Kooy, Frank • Lee, Jeannie • McGill University • Moine, Herve • Razak, Khaleel • Research Updates • Smith, Carolyn B. • Sonenberg, Nahum • Todd, Peter • Vanderklish, Peter October 29, 2017June 18, 2018amygdala, autism, bumetanide, DgkK, EEG, ERK, FDA, Fragile X Meeting, GABA, ganaxolone, glutamate, hyperexcitability, hypersensitivity, metformin, mGluR5, minocycline, mRNAs, Rett syndrome, seizure, sleep, sound

The 18th International Fragile X and Related Neurodevelopmental Disorders Workshop in Quebec, Canada, was a great success, featuring Fragile X much more heavily than any previous meeting in this series! We asked our speakers to summarize their work in their own words. These brief updates from researchers investigating Fragile X.

Targeted Transcriptional Reactivation of FMR1 in Fragile X Syndrome Stem Cells

FRAXA Research Foundation 2016 Grants • 2017 Grants • Current Research Grants • Genetic Rescue • Todd, Peter • University of Michigan September 23, 2017May 1, 2018CRISPR

With a $90,000 grant from FRAXA Research Foundation awarded in 2016, University of Michigan researcher Peter Todd, MD, PhD, is using CRISPR to selectively turn the Fragile X gene back on in stem cells.

University of Michigan researcher Peter Todd, MD, PhD, Aims to Selectively Turn the Fragile X Gene Back on in Human Cells

Theodore Coutilish Research Updates • Todd, Peter • University of Michigan June 13, 2016July 30, 2018CRISPR, FXTAS, sound

Targeted transcriptional reactivation of FMR1 in Fragile X Syndrome stem cells Peter Todd MD, PhD Principal Investigator Jill Haenfler PhD Postdoctoral Fellow University of Michigan Medical Center $45,000 in 2016 renewed for $45,000 in 2017 Swimming Upstream Fish like salmon are born in fresh water streams and rivers. When the time comes for them to breed, they return to the stream of their birth to lay eggs in the same spot where they were born. To accomplish this, they must swim upstream against the current or flow of the stream. Taking a page out of the salmon DNA playbook, University of Michigan scientists Peter Todd, MD, PhD, and postdoctoral fellow Jill Haenfler, Ph.D., are exploring unchartered waters to find a cure for Fragile X Syndrome. The researchers are adapting CRISPR research to reactivate the FMR1 gene, which provides instructions for making a protein called FMRP — needed for normal brainRead more

Role of Experience in Regulating Levels of the Fragile X Protein

FRAXA Research Foundation 1994-2000 Grants • Disease Mechanisms • Mack, Kenneth • Mayo Clinic • Research Grant with Results • Todd, Peter January 1, 2004April 30, 2018autism, glutamate, mGluR, PSD-95

FRAXA Research Grant to Kenneth J. Mack, MD, PhD — Mayo Clinic with Peter K. Todd, MD, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow FRAXA Awards: $29,000 in 2001 $20,000 in 2000 Final Report on Dr. Mack’s Project While a professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Mack investigated whether and how FMRP levels are regulated in response to neuronal stimulation in vivo (in live animals). He looked at the effects of seizures and of experience in his experiments. Dr. Mack and colleagues published their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences: The Fragile X mental retardation protein is required for type-I metabotropic glutamate receptor-dependent translation of PSD-95 Peter K. Todd, Kenneth J. Mack, and James S. Malter PNAS | November 25, 2003 | vol. 100 | no. 24