DeCure's autonomous Psychiatry AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for tic disorder — screening already-approved drugs against its 3-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleTic disorder maps to a 3-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for tic disorder is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
dopamine receptor D2 (DRD2) — DRD2 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet 8alphadrag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 9BS9 · 2.28 Å · ligand (8alpha)-N,N-diethyl-6-methyl-9,10-didehydroergoline-8-carboxamide (7LD). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
A 2021 review of cognitive and behavioral interventions for tic disorder examined 27 studies published between 2000 and 2020. It found that habit reversal training, Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics, and exposure and response prevention are the most widely studied interventions and are recommended as first-line treatments with high confidence. Cognitive psychophysiologic approaches were also reported to be effective. The review notes that further studies are needed to support low-cost and more widely available treatments.
A 2018 study measured serum Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in 34 children with tic disorder and 34 healthy controls. No significant difference in NGF or GDNF levels was found between the patient group and the control group. Within the case group, serum NGF and GDNF were significantly higher in females than in males (p = 0.042 and p = 0.031, respectively), and the two factors correlated with each other (r = 0.803, p < 0.001). The authors state that the absence of a difference between patients and controls does not exclude a role for neurotrophic factors in the etiopathogenesis of tic disorders.
Two 2008 chapters describe the structure of a comprehensive behavioral intervention for tic disorders. The first session includes a rationale for the treatment, creation of a tic hierarchy using the subjective units of discomfort scale, function-based intervention, and self-monitoring training. Subsequent sessions include a review of progress, a review of function-based intervention and competing responses, and habit reversal training for the next tic to be treated.
A 2010 review of susceptibility gene mapping for tic disorder describes it as a chronic neuropsychiatric disorder with childhood onset and a complex disease affected by multiple genes. It notes that many susceptibility genes have been identified and that these studies provide a reference for understanding pathogenesis, but does not report any specific gene findings or replication results. What remains missing is a treatment that has been proven to work in a large, randomised, placebo-controlled trial specifically for tic disorder, as well as validated biomarkers to stratify patients who might respond to any given intervention.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Journal of korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry · 2021 · 31 citations · open access
A Review of Cognitive and Behavioral Interventions for Tic Disorder
AbstractOBJECTIVES: Tic disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by multiple involuntary movements of muscles or vocalization. Although tic symptoms subside as the patient ages, some patients suffer from significant functional impairments related to severe tic symptoms. This manuscript aimed to review the latest scientific evidences for the effect of cognitive-behavioral interventions on tic disorder. METHODS: The relevant studies were identified by searching medical research databases. We focused our search on studies published between 2000 and 2020 in order to reflect the latest scientific evidence. A total of 821 articles were identified in the initial database search and 27 articles were finally included for the review after the exclusion of duplicated and irrelevant articles. RESULTS: Behavioral therapies including habit reversal training, Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics, and exposure and response prevention were the most widely studied interventions for tic disorder and are recommended as first-line treatments for tic disorders with high confidence. Cognitive psychophysiologic approaches were also reported to be effective. CONCLUSION: Further studies are needed to support the future treatment of tics with low-cost and more widely available treatments, in order to ensure better treatment outcomes.
Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences · 2018 · 5 citations · open access
The Role of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and Glial Cell Line‑Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in Tic Disorders
AbstractOBJECTIVES: Tic disorders are associated with neurodevelopmental origin, changes in dopaminergic neurons, and the formation of immunoreactivity, it is thought that neurotrophic factors may be crucial in the emergence of tic disorders. In this study, we targeted to explore role of neurotrophic factors in tic disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate serum Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) and Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) levels in patients with tic disorder and healthy controls. METHODS: Thirty-four children, constituted the case group, were diagnosed with tic disorder. The control group included 34 healthy children. Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) (structured interview) and Yale Global Tic Severity Rating Scale (YGTSRS) was applied to the patients. NGF and GDNF levels were measured with ELISA kit. RESULTS: In case group, serum NGF and GDNF levels were found to be significantly higher in females than males (p = 0.042, p = 0.031). It was determined that serum NGF and GDNF levels were correlated with each other (r = 0.803, p <0.001) and there were no correlations between other parameters. There was no significant difference in NGF and GDNF in patients with tic disorder, compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: The absence of this relationship does not exclude the hypothesis that neurotrophic factors may play a role in the etiopathogenesis of tic disorders.
Oxford University Press eBooks · 2008 · 0 citations
Remaining Sessions
AbstractChapter 4 presents the structure that the remaining sessions of the tic disorder treatment will take. These sessions will include a review of progress that was made during the week, a review of function-based intervention and competing responses for tics, and habit reversal training (HRT) for the next tic to be treated.
Oxford University Press eBooks · 2008 · 0 citations
Session 1
AbstractChapter 2 outlines the structure that the first tic disorder treatment session. This session includes a rationale for the comprehensive behavioral intervention for tic disorders, the creation of a tic hierarchy using the subjective units of discomfort scale (SUDS), function-based intervention, and self-monitoring training.
[Progress in research on susceptibility gene mapping of Tic disorder].
AbstractTic disorder (TD) is a chronic neuropsychiatric disorder with childhood onset. Previous research has demonstrated that genetic factors play an important role in the pathogenesis of TD, and TD is a complex disease affected by multiple genes. Many susceptibility genes have been identified and the relationship between these genes and the etiology of TD was investigated in the past few years. These researches have yielded large valuable information as well as provided a reference for understanding the pathogenesis and further research of this disease. In this paper we reviewed the recent progress in the study on the susceptibility gene mapping of TD.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
