Aripiprazole

Recent articles

Book cover conceptual illustration of chromosome superimposed with genetic tree.

A whisper of autism: Fragile X carriers and the autism phenotype

Among people who carry the fragile X premutation, about 14 percent of boys and 5 percent of girls meet the criteria for autism, but the ‘broad autism phenotype’ may be far more common.

By Anne Skomorowsky
21 April 2022 | 14 min read
Illustration of hybrid objects: part light bulb, part lab vial, some in blue and some in red to signify null and replicated results.

Null and Noteworthy: An ineffective therapy and an effective biomarker

In this edition, a strategy to help autistic children adapt their skills to new situations shows no benefit, but an early-life autism biomarker does.

By Laura Dattaro
6 April 2022 | 4 min read

Q&A with W. David Lohr: Antipsychotics, polypharmacy among autistic preschoolers

Hundreds of preschool-aged children in Kentucky began taking antipsychotic medicines in 2012, according to an analysis of Medicaid records. Lohr discusses what it will it take to get them behavioral therapies instead.

By Niko McCarty
21 September 2021 | 3 min read
Pregnant woman holding two white pills in her hand.

Prenatal exposure to antipsychotic medication does not increase odds of autism, ADHD

Children born to mothers who take antipsychotic drugs during pregnancy are not more likely to have autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or to be born preterm or underweight.

By Peter Hess
20 August 2021 | 2 min read
Brain and marijuana leaves

Q&A with Eric Hollander: Cannabis treatments for autism

As cannabis prohibition slowly lifts in the United States, scientists and families in the autism community are increasingly turning to the drug and its constituent compounds to ease autism-related difficulties, including seizures and irritability.

By Peter Hess
8 June 2021 | 6 min read
Pills spilling out of falling prescription bottle.

Spectrum reporting prompts new review of common drug

Aripiprazole, an antipsychotic medication marketed as Abilify, eases aggressive behavior in autistic children, but questions remain about its side effects.

By Jaclyn Jeffrey-Wilensky
29 January 2021 | 11 min read
researcher facing off with the coronavirus.

Rewind: Spectrum’s best from 2020

Our staff picks the stories, podcasts and special reports that stood out from the rest this past year.

By Spectrum
23 December 2020 | 5 min read
Colorful figure with a circle shape (a pill) and an orange X in the background symbolizing Fragile X

Diabetes drug delivers multiple benefits for people with fragile X syndrome

Researcher Randi Hagerman is a big proponent of metformin — a diabetes drug that she is testing in people with fragile X syndrome. In fact, Hagerman takes the drug herself as a preventive measure against cancer.

By Polina Porotskaya
17 September 2019 | 6 min read

Clinicians should consider off-label treatments for autism

Clinicians need a more consistent and evidence-based approach to prescribing antipsychotics to children and adolescents with autism.

By Maurizio Bonati
7 May 2019 | 5 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Harvard University lays off fly database team

The layoffs jeopardize this resource, which has served more than 4,000 labs for about three decades.

By Claudia López Lloreda
13 August 2025 | 5 min read

Chris Rozell explains how brain stimulation and AI are helping to treat mental disorders

Rozell and his colleagues, using deep brain stimulation and explainable artificial intelligence, have developed tools to help people with treatment-resistant depression.

By Paul Middlebrooks
13 August 2025 | 1 min read
Illustration of a musical staff with notes represented by neurons.

This paper changed my life: Abigail Person on birdsong, feed-forward circuits and convergent computations

By isolating specific neuron types involved in zebra finch birdsong, this 2002 Nature paper from Michael Fee and colleagues revealed elegant neural mechanisms controlling the timing of natural learned behavior.

By Abigail Person
12 August 2025 | 6 min listen