You're listening to shortwave from NPR.

Hey short waivers, Emily Quang here.

So today we're going to talk about finding a treatment

for a genetic disorder called fragile X syndrome.

Right John?

Right.

So as our resident brain correspondent

here on the science desk,

you've been following the story for a decade.

Yeah, I started reporting on fragile X

way back when it first looked like scientists

might have a drug that could treat the disorder.

And for people who may not have been following the story

as closely as I have,

I should probably mention that fragile X

is an inherited disorder that's caused by mutations

to one particular gene on the X chromosome.

Right, that's why it's called fragile X.

Exactly.

These mutations affect brain development

so they can cause lots of different problems.

The most common one is intellectual disabilities.

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