Marta Figueiredo, PhD, managing science editor —

Marta holds a biology degree, a master’s in evolutionary and developmental biology, and a PhD in biomedical sciences from the University of Lisbon, Portugal. She was awarded a research scholarship and a PhD scholarship, and her research focused on the role of several signaling pathways in thymus and parathyroid glands embryonic development. She also previously worked as an assistant professor of an annual one-week embryology course at the University of Lisbon’s Faculty of Medicine.

Articles by Marta Figueiredo

Top 10 Huntington’s Disease Stories of 2021

Throughout 2021, Huntington’s Disease News brought you daily coverage of the latest scientific findings, treatment developments, and clinical trials related to Huntington’s disease. As a reminder of what mattered most to you last year, here are the top 10 most-read articles of 2021 with a brief description of what made…

FDA Places Prilenia’s Oral Pridopidine on Fast Track

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given fast track designation to Prilenia Therapeutics’ pridopidine as a potential oral treatment for Huntington’s disease. This designation is given to therapies that show considerable potential in addressing serious conditions for which available treatments fall short. It is meant to…

Abnormal DNA Repair Mechanism May Be Therapeutic Target

The interaction between FAN1 and MLH1 — two DNA repair proteins known to be genetic modifiers of Huntington’s disease — protects against further expansion of disease-causing CAG repeats, according to a study using human and mouse models of the disease. Specifically, this interaction prevents MLH1’s recruitment to a DNA…

AMT-130 Gene Therapy Appears Safe; More Data Forthcoming

No significant safety concerns were identified in the first eight Huntington’s disease patients treated with uniQure’s potential gene therapy AMT-130 in a U.S. Phase 1/2 clinical trial. Six of these patients received the low dose of the therapy — which is delivered directly into the brain — and two…