Fragile X Research Grants and Fellowships Funded 2011
4/7/2011: FRAXA Awarded $1,054,286 in Fragile X Research
Each year FRAXA holds a competition to find – and fund – the most promising new projects aimed at discovering targeted, effective treatments – and ultimately a cure – for Fragile X and related autism spectrum disorders. Each team has a page on this website with details.
Our competitive grant-making process ensures that the best and most innovative research gets supported, that new scientists join the Fragile X field, and most important – that we get closer to a cure. FRAXA aims to advance the kind of translational research that is most likely to lead to improved treatment.
FRAXA Postdoctoral Fellowships are for $45,000/yr for 2 years. FRAXA Project Grants vary in amount; amounts are per year and most projects are renewable based on progress).
New Project Grants $363,088
New Postdoctoral Fellowships: $315,000
Renewed Postdoctoral Fellowships: $376,198
Total: $1,054,286
Additional awards were made later in the year, bringing 2011 total funding to $1.2 million.
FRAXA Drug Validation Initiative (FRAXA-DVI)
The FRAXA Drug Validation Initiative (FRAXA-DVI) provides speedy, cost-effective, objective preclinical testing to validate investigational and repurposed compounds for Fragile X.
Defining Subcellular Specificity of Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor (mGluR5) Antagonists
With $217,500 in grants from FRAXA Research Foundation, Dr. Karen O’Malley and team studied the function of mGluR5 when it is inside cells. Many of the symptoms of Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) are thought to arise due to overactive metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) signaling, which is normally opposed by the protein missing in FXS, Fragile X Protein (FMRP).
PIKE as a Central Regulator of Synaptic Dysfunction in Fragile X Syndrome
With $255,000 from FRAXA Research Foundation, Dr. Suzanne Zukin at Albert Einstein College of Medicine studied signalling pathways in Fragile X syndrome.
Fragile X Mutant Mouse Models
With $375,000 in grants from the FRAXA Research Foundation since 2009, Dr. David Nelson has developed an impressive array of advanced mouse models of Fragile X, at Baylor College of Medicine. These models are available to investigators worldwide on request. This resource has been essential for a broad, rapid distribution of Fragile X and related gene mouse models and has increased the pace of Fragile X research.
The Endocannabinoid System in a Mouse Model of Fragile X Syndrome
With a $128,500 grant over 2011-2013 from FRAXA Research Foundation, Drs. Bradley Alger and Ai-Hui Tang at the University of Maryland researched endocannabinoid pathways in Fragile X.
Inhibitors of STEP as a Novel Treatment of Fragile X Syndrome
With a $349,000 grant from FRAXA Research Foundation from 2008-2015, Dr. Paul Lombroso and his team at Yale University researched if inhibiting STEP could reduce behavioral abnormalities in Fragile X syndrome. Results published.
Functional Interplay Between FMRP and CDK5 Signaling
With a $180,000 grant from the FRAXA Research Foundation over 2011-2014, Dr. Yue Feng and Dr. Wenqi Li at Emory University will study CDK5 pathway function and regulation in an effort to break down whether and how CDK5 signaling is affected by the loss of the Fragile X protein, FMRP, in the Fragile X mouse model.
Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3 (GSK3), Lithium and Fragile X
With $208,000 in funds from FRAXA Research Foundation, Dr. Richard Jope and his team at the University of Miami tested whether newly developed, highly specific inhibitors of GSK3 can reduce behavioral abnormalities in Fragile X mice.
Treatment of Fragile X Syndrome via Dopamine Enhancers and Glutamate Inhibitors
FRAXA Awards $50,000 in 2011 and $50,000 in 2010 to Patricia Cogram, PhD for treatment of Fragile X syndrome via Dopamine Enhancers and Glutamate Inhibitors. This project aims to follow up our and others observations that the dopamine receptor is under expressed in the Fragile X syndrome and thus determine the effectiveness of targeted pharmacological treatments in Fragile X syndrome.
Small Rho GTPases, a Potential Therapeutic Target for Fragile X Syndrome
With $384,345 in grants from FRAXA Research Foundation, Dr. MariVi Tejada from the University of Houston focused on a particularly promising point of intervention in pathways of brain receptors, and tested several potential therapeutic compounds in an attempt to rescue function in the mouse model of Fragile X.