Rapamycin

Recent articles

Micrograph of neuron dendrite segments.

Maternal sleep apnea may contribute to autism-like traits in rats

Pups born to mothers that experience low oxygen during sleep have overactive mTOR signaling, which has been linked to some forms of autism.

By Angie Voyles Askham
18 March 2022 | 5 min read

Autism model mice develop typical social and motor behaviors after drug treatment

The drug suppresses an overactive signaling pathway implicated in tuberous sclerosis complex.

By Laura Dattaro
9 March 2022 | 4 min read

Synaptic overgrowth, hyperconnectivity may define autism subtype

Model mice of the subtype also show hyperactivity in a signaling pathway called mTOR, bolstering the idea that distinct forms of autism have different biological roots and may require different treatment approaches.

By Angie Voyles Askham
18 November 2021 | 4 min read

Molecular overlap links tuberous sclerosis, fragile X

Brain cells from the cerebellums of mice that model tuberous sclerosis show dampened levels of proteins controlled by FMRP, the protein missing in fragile X syndrome.

By Rachel Zamzow
16 August 2021 | 5 min read
Illustration showing the human brain with neurons made out of flower shapes and the cerebellum highlighted in gold and yellow.

Brain’s motor hub plays unsung role in social skills, cognition

Long known as the director of movement, the cerebellum may also coordinate social and cognitive abilities, including those central to autism.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
9 March 2020 | 7 min read

Mouse study reveals overlooked target for autism therapies

Blocking one form of an enzyme implicated in autism eases unusual behaviors and seizures in mice missing a top autism gene.

By Nicholette Zeliadt
20 November 2019 | 4 min read
row of babies playing with toys that look like genome sequence

Studies of tuberous sclerosis may shed light on biology of autism

Tuberous sclerosis provides a unique opportunity to understand autism because about half of people with that single-gene condition also have autism.

By Mustafa Sahin
24 September 2019 | 5 min read
Two scientists standing in a lab.

Family ties: Sabatini brothers crack codes that may underlie autism

David and Bernardo Sabatini, brothers born just a year and a half year apart, invent their way to answering big questions about autism.

By Hannah Furfaro
30 August 2018 | 9 min read
group of rats on wood chips

Drug in trials for one autism-linked condition may worsen another

The drug rapamycin, which is in clinical trials as a treatment for tuberous sclerosis, may exacerbate features of fragile X syndrome, another condition related to autism.

By Hannah Furfaro
26 January 2018 | 4 min read
Mice missing the tuberous sclerosis gene in astrocytes have frequent seizures.

Cancer drug wards off seizures in mouse model of tuberous sclerosis

A drug called rapamycin prevents seizures in a mouse model of the autism-related condition tuberous sclerosis complex.

By Hannah Furfaro
13 November 2017 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

US Department of Health and Human Services building.

Latest iteration of U.S. federal autism committee comes under fire

The new panel “represents a radical departure from all past rosters,” says autism researcher Helen Tager-Flusberg.

By Angie Voyles Askham
29 January 2026 | 9 min read
Progenitors cells in the medial ganglionic eminence become increasingly organized during development as rows of brain imaging progress from top to bottom.

‘Tour de force’ study flags fount of interneurons in human brain

The newly discovered cell type might point to the origins of the inhibitory imbalance linked to autism and other conditions.

By Holly Barker
29 January 2026 | 4 min read

Michael Shadlen explains how theory of mind ushers nonconscious thoughts into consciousness

All of our thoughts, mostly nonconscious, are interrogations of the world, Shadlen says. The opportunity to report our answers to ourselves or others brings a thought into conscious awareness.

By Paul Middlebrooks
28 January 2026 | 1 min read

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