8 ms·
Drug reverses autism-like brain changes in adult mice within hours
- galleywest200 3mo ago> The effects of rapamycin are temporary, and repeated dosing loses efficacy, making rapamycin, itself, an unlikely candidate as a broadly-used treatment.
- onesandofgrain 3mo agoCycling is possible
- SoMomentary 3mo agoDoesn't the "potential for toxicity from repeated doses" make this sort of doubtful?
- RobotToaster 3mo agoPossibly, possibly not. Bryan Johnson took it for 5 years in an attempt to slow aging. He eventually discontinued because it was causing an increase in skin infections (as you'd expect from an immune system suppressant), but cycling could mitigate that.
- nradov 3mo agoRegardless of side effects there is no reliable evidence that rapamycin slows aging in humans.
- inigyou 3mo agoWould we have evidence even if it was true?
- onesandofgrain 3mo agoWhat do you mean? Population control?
- inigyou 3mo agoHas anyone done an experiment administering rapamycin to humans to see if it slows aging? Would that experiment pass an ethics committee?
- nradov 3mo agoWe don't even have reliable biomarkers for aging in general so what would the endpoints for such an experiment be?
- inigyou 3mo agoLifespan would be an easy one to measure. Experiment could take a while.
- nradov 3mo agoTough to control for all the confounding variables, though.
- onesandofgrain 3mo agoSomeone here wants humans to die early indeed.
- onesandofgrain 3mo agoWe do. Read Ending Aging by aubrey de gray
- nradov 2mo agoNah, he just makes things up. Junk science.
- onesandofgrain 3mo agoWhat the fuck is the point of this commemt? Like what are you even insinuating? Half the drugs in the world have dubious evidence. U bafoon
- aaron695 3mo ago[dead]
- ButlerianJihad 3mo agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowers_for_Algernon https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flowers_for_Algernon
- sublinear 3mo agoMore like https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madness_and_Civilization https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madness_and_Civilization
- selectively 3mo ago[dead]
- Scandiravian 3mo agoBeing autistic myself, I feel conflicted about trying to "cure autism" Every day is challenging because I have to manage my energy, mask in social situations and at work, etc On the other hand, I like who I am and I'm also very good at what I do because my brain is structured the way it is. I can imagine a society that is structured in a way, where I don't need the accommodations I'm currently dependent on If the negative impacts I'm experiencing are a consequence of the how we've structured our society, then I don't think it's autistic people who need to change to fit in Of course there are much more severe cases than me where autistic people need much more support and have severe learning disabilities, where it could be a huge improvement to quality of life If it was possible to fully trust that a hypothetical "cure" would only be used in these severe cases, I might be excited about a potential breakthrough, but historically this unfortunately haven't been the case
- f6v 3mo ago> If it was possible to fully trust that a hypothetical "cure" would only be used in these severe cases Isn’t it like the Ozempic? Some take it, some don’t.
- applfanboysbgon 3mo agoThey have a valid concern. Unlike obesity, people with anything regarded as an intellectual disability are liable to have other people attempting to make decisions on their behalf, denying them agency over their own treatment, and legal systems will often enforce this denial of agency.
- dns_snek 3mo agoI see this sentiment often, but only when it comes to autism. How is this different from other disorders, disabilities, illnesses? You could make the exact same arguments for blindness. Every day is challenging, difficulties are mostly a consequence of how we've structured society, it's other people who should accommodate those who have different needs, etc. This narrative seems to originate from, and is perpetuated within online autism communities. I think it's great that people feel content with the way they are but I don't understand the animosity towards a mere suggestion that a cure should exist. I'm familiar with the history behind it and I'm on high alert when someone ventures into eugenics, however I firmly believe that we should be looking for a cure, just like we do for every other illness and disorder.
- LoganDark 3mo agoThis is interesting, it may be a type of thing I'd be curious about at some point. I don't think it's possible to undo the general way my brain is organized (badly), but I'd be curious to see if I'd get any benefit anyway. (I seem to be a rare type of autistic, because while I can reliably find all three other major types, it has been very difficult for me to find more of my own :/)
- metalman 3mo agoso, like a vacine against autism, rather than the impossibility of it bieng caused by one? instantly?
- stonyrubbish 3mo agoI have ASD Level 1, and I definitely don't want to be "cured." I feel like autism has basically given me significantly stronger reasoning, pattern recognition, and systemizing abilities in exchange for being socially a bit weird and awkward and eccentric. I recognize that this is the perspective of someone who is high-functioning but I strongly enjoy having autism.
- inigyou 3mo agoRapamycin - how strange. The Mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) gene/protein regulates cell growth in some not well understood way. Maternal inflammation also aligns with autistic people being extra sensitive to negative feedback. Maybe if you are born in a world of disease you are supposed to be extra cautious of everything.
- fuckinpuppers 3mo agoI’ve always just viewed autism and the spectrum as the next step in our evolution. It’s not neurotypical vs spectrum anymore. I just think less and less people are neuro “typical”