Fruit fly study of genetic syndrome

Researchers at the Tallinn University of Technology, Estonia, have developed a fruit fly model of Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome (PTHS), a severe learning and mobility disability.

During the study, published in Disease Models and Mechanisms, the TalTech scientists showed that they could relieve some of the symptoms of the syndrome in the flies by feeding them a diet which promoted activity of a gene known to be affected in the condition.

The team hope that their fly model may help further understanding of the syndrome, and be used to test any potential treatments.