Radically different
A University of California, Riverside-led research team has developed a gene therapy that restored production of a missing brain protein, corrected abnormalities in brain circuitry, and improved behavior in a mouse model of Fragile X syndrome (FXS). The study, published in the journal Molecular Therapy Nucleic Acids, tested an adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based therapy carrying a normal human version of the FMR1 gene to produce the Fragile X messenger ribonucleoprotein (FMRP) and found that early treatment normalized several measures of brain activity while improving social behavior, exploratory behavior, and cognitive flexibility.
“In a typical brain, FMRP acts like a brake or a volume control,” said senior author Iryna Ethell, PhD, a professor of biomedical sciences at the UC Riverside School of Medicine. “Without it, neural circuits become overactive and less efficient, which contributes to many of the developmental and behavioral challenges associated with FXS.”
FXS is the most common single-gene cause of autism spectrum disorder. According to the researchers, the disorder typically manifests from expansion of CGG repeats in the 5′ untranslated region of FMR1. The mutation causes methylation and silencing of the gene, leading to a major reduction or complete loss of FMRP, an RNA-binding protein that regulates numerous messenger RNAs involved in synapse formation, maturation, and function. Loss of the protein can lead to abnormal synaptic activity and increased cortical hyperexcitability.
FXS can produce sensory hypersensitivity, seizures, anxiety, intellectual disability, developmental delays, repetitive behaviors, and social communication difficulty. Current treatments for this syndrome don’t seek to cure it, rather they are aimed at managing the associated symptoms of anxiety, hyperactivity, irritability, aggression, depression, and seizures.
The therapy developed by the research team was designed to replace missing FMRP rather than repair the original mutation. To do this, the researchers used an AAV9 viral vector to deliver human FMR1 isoform 7, one of the most abundant forms of the protein found in the brain. The therapy was tested in newborn mice lacking FMRP via intracerebroventricular injections at either a low or high doses.
The work built on earlier research that explored the potential of AAV-mediated restoration of FMRP in rodent models. These prior studies used a range of viral serotypes, promoters, delivery routes, and FMRP isoforms and showed they could partially or completely correct specific biochemical, physiological, and behavioral abnormalities. The researchers noted that studies involving mouse and rat FMRP homologs had shown that restoring the protein could improve a range of Fragile X-related deficits.
The current study showed that high-dose treatment produced the strongest positive effects in the mouse models. Electroencephalography showed normalization of baseline gamma power, improvements in responses to sound, reduced background neural activity, and improved habituation to repeated auditory stimuli. The therapy also restored abnormal patterns of brain-wave coupling that have been associated with Fragile X-related dysfunction.
Behavioral testing showed that these improvements persisted into adulthood. Mice receiving the higher dose displayed normalized exploratory behavior, improved social preference, and better performance in probabilistic reversal learning, a measure of cognitive flexibility that requires adapting when previously rewarded behaviors stop producing rewards.
“Fragile X mice tend to persist with an old solution even after the rules change,” Ethell said. “After treatment, they became much better at adapting, performing similarly to mice with normal FMR1 function.”
The researchers noted that their work showed the importance of delivering at therapy for FXS early in its development. They said that widespread distribution of the potential new gene therapy throughout the brain was necessary to achieve a therapeutic benefit. There was a clear relationship between the proportion of neurons expressing the therapeutic gene and the degree of functional recovery, which indicated that restoring FMRP in a sufficient number of cortical cells is critical for correcting any behavioral deficits.
While a promising step, the investigators said that the work was a preclinical study and that future research will now focus on developing delivery methods that can of have broad distribution across the human brain. The team also believes their approach could have broader applications.
“Beyond FXS, the findings may provide a roadmap for treating other genetic neurodevelopmental disorders caused by the loss of a single critical protein,” Ethell said. “Our study shows it may be possible to restore function across complex brain networks by replacing a missing gene. That gives us reason to be optimistic about the future of genetic medicine.”
The post Gene Therapy Restores Brain Function and Behavior in Fragile X Syndrome appeared first on Inside Precision Medicine.
by Annabella Hagen, LCSW
When I met Marie, she shared how faith and her connection with a Higher Power had always been important in her life. Her parents taught her that faith could be an anchor during hard times.
But Marie also had a genetic predisposition to obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). When doubts and fears began to take over, she slowly lost confidence that she could ever feel peace again. Without knowing it, the more she tried to reason with the thoughts, fight them, or seek reassurance, the stronger they became.
Her OCD changed themes as she grew up. The voice within whispered different fears at different times:
“You may hurt the kids you’re babysitting.”
“You caused your granny’s pneumonia because you didn’t wash your hands well enough.”
“Am I going blind?”
“Why do these ugly images come into my head in sacred places? I must stop them.”
She tried to “fix” her doubts. But the more she focused on them, the more they grew. They distracted her from what mattered most — including her relationship with her Higher Power. She blamed herself for not feeling close to God. She felt ashamed and spiritually broken.
Many people with OCD blame themselves for their unwanted thoughts. They panic.
“Why would I think this?”
“What does this say about me?”
“Am I a terrible person?”
No matter what Marie did, she could not find certainty. She could not get enough reassurance. She wished she could control her thoughts and feelings. Because she couldn’t, she became very hard on herself. Her self-compassion slowly disappeared.
But here is something important: every human being — whether they have OCD or not — experiences disturbing thoughts, images, or impulses at times. Research going back decades, including studies like Rachman and de Silva (1978), shows that intrusive thoughts are common in the general population.
The difference is not the content of the thoughts. The difference is how often they come, how intense they feel, and how much distress they cause.
When someone without OCD has a strange thought, they may feel uncomfortable and say, “That was weird,” and move on.
But someone with OCD feels a strong need to solve the doubt. They may analyze it, argue with it, pray repeatedly, seek reassurance, or try to push it away. Without realizing it, these efforts make the thoughts louder and more frequent. This is how the OCD cycle grows.
Understanding this can bring hope. It means the problem is not your faith. It is the pattern.
And the good news is that OCD is not only genetic or neurological. It is also behavioral. That means you can learn to respond differently!
Thoughts and feelings are like the weather. They come and go. When we fight them or try to control them, they often stay longer.
You can learn to let them be.
Through Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), you can practice moving toward what matters most — your faith, your family, your values — even when doubt is present. Instead of trying to silence the thoughts, you can choose not to follow the urge to fix them.
The first step is awareness.
You may already notice the unwanted thoughts. But can you notice how you respond?
Ask yourself gently:
These small moments of awareness begin to weaken the cycle.
As you practice new responses, you can begin shaping new pathways in your brain. Slowly, you can move closer to the connection with your Higher Power that you have been longing for.
Thoughts come and go. What matters most is what you choose to do.
You can act in faith and trust your Higher Power, even when the OCD voice is loud. That voice feels powerful, but it is not your identity. It does not define your relationship with God.
Change takes time. It takes practice. But it is possible. And it is worth it!
And you can find your way back!
Remember, OCD may try to use your faith as a weapon, your faith is not the problem—the disorder is. OCD is a health condition that seeks certainty where faith invites trust.
If you find yourself in a cycle of “loud” thoughts and repetitive compulsions—like over-praying, seeking constant reassurance, or fearing you’ve lost your connection to the divine—know that healing is possible.
To help more individuals like Marie navigate these challenges, the International OCD Foundation has released a comprehensive new brochure specifically for people of faith.
Download the “OCD is Not What You Think It Is” Brochure here or visit the Faith & OCD Resource Page to find more specialized support and information.
The post When OCD Is Loud, Trust Your Higher Power appeared first on International OCD Foundation.
The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is roughly one in 36 people, with a male-to-female ratio of 4:1. The disorder is known to be influenced by multiple factors, both genetic (gene mutations and copy number variations) and environmental, such as infections during pregnancy. However, the role of immunity in genetic ASD remains unclear.
One area of interest lies in lymphocytes—cells that are known to shape neurodevelopment and behavior. But their roles in neurodevelopmental disorders are not well defined.
Now, new research shows that a subset of T cells—γδ T cells—can infiltrate the brain and contribute to changes in social behavior in a genetic mouse model that mimics behavioral features of ASD. Depleting these cells from the brain increased sociability, suggesting that targeting abnormal immune function during neurodevelopment may offer interventions for ASD.
This work is published in Science Immunology in the paper, “CXCL16-mediated recruitment of γδ T cells to the brain reduces sociability in mice.”
Infections during pregnancy can induce the release of interleukin-17A (IL-17A) from T helper 17 cells and γδ T cells. Prior research has linked this type of maternal immune activation to neurodevelopmental disorders, but there is a lack of evidence connecting IL-17A and social behaviors in genetic mouse models.
To investigate this further, a team of researchers from the Division of Allergy and Immunology in the Medical Institute of Bioregulation at Kyushu University, in Fukuoka, Japan, studied 15q11-13 duplication (15q dup) mice—a mouse model that mimics a chromosome duplication found in some humans with ASD. These mice also demonstrate reduced social interactions, behavioral inflexibility, and increased anxiety-like behaviors.
The team analyzed immune cell populations in the brains of the 15q dup mice. Their findings suggest an increase in γδ T cells in the developing brains when compared with wild-type mice.
Using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), the team uncovered that this was most likely due to microglia in the brain expressing the chemokine CXCL16, which promotes immune cell migration. CXCL16 was highly expressed in the brains of 15q dup mice and contributed to increased infiltration of γδ T cells.
In addition, experiments revealed that deleting IL-17A–producing γδ T cells or blocking them with antibodies after birth increased sociability and reduced anxiety-like behaviors in the 15q dup mice.
Taken together, the authors note that these findings suggest that “immune dysregulation contributes to social behavior deficits in 15q dup mice, consistent with observations in maternal immune activation models, and may represent a potential target for interventions for ASD-associated differences in social behavior.”
The post Brain-Infiltrating T Cells Linked to Social Deficits in Autism Mouse Model appeared first on GEN – Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News.
The mission of the International OCD Foundation — to ensure that no one affected by OCD or related disorders suffers alone — requires the collaboration and dedication of countless individuals and professionals around the world. Each year, the IOCDF is honored to recognize a few of these contributors who have gone above and beyond to inspire hope, build community, and move us closer to a world where everyone has access to effective support and care.
These awards will be presented at the 31st Annual OCD Conference, sponsored by OCD Institute Texas, on Saturday, July 11, 2026.
2026 Career Achievement Award Winner: Sabine Wilhelm, PhD
Highlighting the significant and notable contributions of a professional in the field of OCD and related disorders.
Sabine Wilhelm, PhD, is the Donovan-Chien Family Endowed Professor at Harvard Medical School and Chief of Psychology at Mass General Brigham. She directs both the Center for OCD and Related Disorders and the Center for Digital Mental Health at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Wilhelm’s work leverages AI and technology to improve mental health care globally, focusing on developing personalized, scalable digital treatments. She has authored 375 publications and nine books. She has received major awards, including the NAMI Scientific Research Award and the Peter Ranney Innovation Award from the World Medical Innovation Forum. Dr. Wilhelm is the outgoing Chair of the IOCDF Scientific & Clinical Advisory Council after serving since 2023, and she has served on numerous committees to support the Foundation’s work to advance research and resources for OCD and related disorders.
2026 Patricia Perkins Service Award Winner: Aureen Wagner, PhD
Honors any professional or IOCDF member who has stood out as a long-time (10+ years) and active contributor to the IOCDF in multiple ways. This award is named after Patricia Perkins, IOCDF co-founder, past president of the Board of Directors, and previous executive director.
Winner Bio: Aureen Pinto Wagner, Ph.D., joined the IOCDF in 1992 as a newly-minted clinical psychologist. She presented a workshop for parents at her first conference in 2000, and has been a regular presenter at most conferences since then. Dr. Wagner has contributed to several IOCDF livestreams and presented at the annual Online OCD Camp for youth and parents since its inception in 2021. She serves on the Scientific and Clinical Advisory Board of the IOCDF and has been on the faculty of the Behavior Therapy Training Institute since 2001.
Dr. Wagner is dedicated to bringing hope and help to families experiencing OCD via evidence-based, developmentally-tailored treatment, and to increasing access to treatment by training clinicians to treat OCD. With the goal of disseminating evidence-based treatment, Dr. Wagner provides workshops and consultation to clinicians and has published a treatment manual focused on child-friendly treatment titled, “Treatment of OCD in Children and Adolescents: A Professional’s Kit.”
At The Anxiety Wellness Center in Cary, North Carolina, Dr. Wagner provides in-person and telehealth treatment for youth and adults with OCD, anxiety and related conditions, as well as parenting support for families. In keeping with her mission of empowering youth and families, Dr. Wagner wrote the award-winning books “Up and Down the Worry Hill: A Children’s Book about Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and its Treatment,” “What to do when your Child has Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Strategies and Solutions” and “Worried No More: Help and Hope for Anxious Children.”
2026 Hero Award Winner: Stephen Smith
Recognizes any individual that has stood out as a particularly effective advocate for OCD and related disorders or who helped raise awareness of these disorders.
Stephen Smith is the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of NOCD, the world’s largest OCD-specialty treatment provider for both adults and children. After emerging from a personal struggle with undiagnosed OCD and experiencing the success of Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP) therapy first-hand, Stephen made it his mission to transform the behavioral health treatment system for people with OCD and related conditions. Under his leadership, NOCD has done that. NOCD drives OCD awareness campaigns that reach millions of people each year, cares for hundreds of thousands of people with OCD, and is contracted to serve more than 140 million commercial lives nationally.
2026 Youth Hero Award Winner: Gabriella Lee
Recognizes any youth (under 18) that has stood out as a particularly effective advocate for OCD and related disorders or who helped raise awareness of these disorders. This award is presented by UNSTUCK: an OCD kids movie.
Gabriella Chaeyoon Lee is a junior at Great Oak High School in California who is dedicated to promoting mental health awareness, particularly surrounding OCD. Inspired by her personal connection to OCD through her mother’s diagnosis, she actively works to reduce stigma and support others through her school club and independent initiatives. She is passionate about creating safe and inclusive spaces where individuals feel understood and supported. She hopes to continue her advocacy and contribute to meaningful change in mental health communities.
2026 Illumination Award Winner: Tiffany Jenkins
Honors media personalities who have represented OCD or related disorders in a respectful, accurate, and appropriate way, or who have challenged stereotypes and helped to fight stigma around mental health issues.
Tiffany Jenkins is a comedian, New York Times bestselling author, speaker, and podcast host with a combined social media following of over 9 million and more than one billion video views worldwide.
While widely recognized for her relatable and candid comedy, Tiffany is deeply committed to raising awareness around mental health and addiction. Drawing from her own lived experience in recovery, she travels across the United States speaking at high schools, correctional facilities, treatment centers, and conferences, where she delivers impactful, honest conversations that resonate with diverse audiences.
Above all, Tiffany is a devoted mother, bringing authenticity, resilience, and humor into both her work and her everyday life.
The post Introducing the 2026 IOCDF Award Winners of the 31st Annual OCD Conference appeared first on International OCD Foundation.
A Conversation with Tom Osborn, Founder of Africa’s Largest Mental Health Provider Shamiri Institute
Aaliyah Nadirah Madyun, program director at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute, recently sat down with Tom Osborn, founder of the Shamiri Institute and an International Advisory Board member at the SNF Global Center. They discussed Osborn’s remarkable journey as a young entrepreneur.
At just 18, while studying at Harvard University, Osborn founded the Shamiri Institute, which has since grown into Africa’s largest youth mental health provider — now reaching over 100,000 young people annually and having trained and employed more than 3,000 providers. In this candid conversation, Osborn shares hard-won lessons on resilience, mentorship, and well-being. He offers advice to the SNF Global Center’s Youth Council members — many of whom are launching their own mental health initiatives in communities across Greece, Brazil, South Africa, and beyond.
AM: You founded Shamiri when you were just 18. Many members of our SNF Global Center Youth Councils are now launching their own mental health organizations. What advice would you give them?
TO: I think these past three to five years post-COVID have been quite good for mental health. There’s just more dialogue, more conversation. It’s maybe one of the best times to start working in mental health. There is a big space for young people to be leaders. On the other hand, it’s also very difficult.
AM: What kind of difficulties can young people expect to encounter?
TO: It’s very difficult for a few reasons. We normally start this work because we have a lot of passion, enthusiasm, and commitment to the cause. But that is not the day-to-day of being a social entrepreneur. It’s convincing people to partner with you, to fund you, etc., which is a completely different skill set to learn. And the second part is getting a level of comfort with failure. Because the reality is, on average, nine out of ten doors that you try to open will not open; especially when you are starting. For example, if you’re in Brazil and there are 100 other young people trying to start something, there is a finite pool of opportunities and resources. So, when you are starting, part of the initial process requires you to develop resilience and a growth mindset.
AM: Could you speak about the role mentorship has played in your journey, and how young entrepreneurs can leverage mentorship to navigate the challenges of building something from the ground up?
TO: Mentorship is really crucial. Finding folks — researchers, practitioners, or just folks in the community — who can help provide guidance as you build the skills you need to be an effective entrepreneur.
AM: How would you recommend young people go about finding a mentor? It seems like that ability, identifying and cultivating a mentoring relationship, might be a skill set in itself.
TO: In my experience, there are three pathways. In many countries we have what we call accelerators, which look for young people who literally have an idea and enthusiasm, and then take them through 10–16 weeks of bootcamp where they can learn the skills to develop their idea. So, that’s one pathway. The second pathway, which really worked for me but may sound intimidating, is direct outreach to folks who have done something similar. So, you can do some research. It doesn’t have to even be related to mental health. It can be education or some broader thing. But find someone who has built something that you admire. You will be surprised how many people are willing to support and pay it forward, because we all have benefited from the help of someone else. I created an Excel spreadsheet with a list of people who I looked up to, and I reached out to them on LinkedIn. Sometimes you can even find their email. Some people said “no”, but if you reach out to 10 or 20 people, some people will talk to you. And the third pathway is . . . increasingly we have a lot of resources like the SNF Global Center Youth Councils and international organizations that deal with mental health. You can join these organizations to expand your network.
AM: Could you share your story with us and tell us how you got started?
TO: I started when I was in University as part of a research project I was doing when I was studying psychology. I needed to do something for my thesis and in the process of doing that I applied to an accelerator. I also went to my professor and asked him, ‘Do you know anyone who could connect me with?’ In fact, he helped me write my first grant and gave me the opportunity to learn those entrepreneurial skills.
AM: Starting at such a young age, one can imagine that you must have encountered many challenges and setbacks. What were the key lessons you took away from that growth period?
TO: The reality of this work, and not to discourage people but to give a factual picture, is that there are more setbacks than there are wins. Part of the process is that you learn from the setbacks. I can give you an example of some of my own setbacks. In my first year of doing this, we tried to raise money. We applied for grants, sent out proposals, etc.; but we couldn’t raise any money. So, what I did after getting the rejection is I would email and ask, “Do you have any feedback for us about why we didn’t get the funding?” or “Can we jump on a call so you can explain what we can do better?” What I learned from that was the way I was communicating what we were doing made sense in my mind, but I wasn’t putting myself in the shoes of the person who was reviewing the proposal. I only have five to ten minutes of someone’s time. So, how can I really simplify my message? For example, my first proposal was, “Shamiri does task-shifting mental health interventions for adolescent depression, anxiety, etc.” If you are in the field, you maybe get it. But if you are somebody who is just reading grants on mental health education, you don’t really get it. Now we say, “Shamiri means thrive and we enable young people to thrive.” So that invites people to ask how we’re helping people to thrive.
AM: What is another setback that surprised you?
A second example of a failure is getting buy-in from the beneficiaries that we were trying to work with. I thought, “We have this great idea, we’ve done this research, and it works. We’re going to go to schools and they’re going to be like, ‘This is great! Come work with us.’ Teachers are going to want to work with us.” But actually, in our first three years we were trying to work with 25,000 students and we ended up working with only 1,000 students. We really struggled with getting people to sign up. The lesson from that was we were thinking more from the idea this was our product, rather than thinking, “What is the problem that I am trying to solve for this person?” To give a concrete example, there are three people we need to get buy-in from: young people in schools, teachers, and parents. Just having a great product does not mean that people are going to use it. You need to figure out what the problem is. How can I solve it? How do I communicate this to users?
AM: I can imagine that dealing with failures and setbacks is extremely hard, especially for a young person. What would you say to a young person who is currently experiencing this?
TO: Finding ways to stay grounded and healthy from a well-being perspective is really crucial. Identify what matters to you and connect with those things. And ideally if you can find a way to build a routine around that, it could help. Doing this work takes a big toll. If you don’t find ways to ground yourself and get the energy to continue with this, you may burn out.
AM: Do you have some final words for our Youth Council members and other young people reading this?
TO: Those closest to the problem are those closest to the solution. I am from Kenya, which is a really young country. The median age is 19 and 70 percent of the population is under 30. If we are to solve some of these pressing problems, including mental health, those solutions are going to have to come from young people.
The post Turning Rejection Into a Roadmap: Advice for the Next Generation of Mental Health Leaders appeared first on Child Mind Institute.