Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38102393›Full record

Trial reportJournal of autism and developmental disorders2025

Brief Report: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover, Proof-of-Concept Study of Minocycline in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Craig A Erickson, Rebecca C Shaffer, Meredith Will, Lauren M Schmitt, Paul Horn, Kathy Hirst, Ernest V Pedapati, Nicole Ober, Rameshwari V Tumuluru, Benjamin L Handen and 1 more

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 26% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Beyond the Outburst: Charting a New Frontier for Understanding and Treating Irritability in Autistic Adults.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2026
    Review
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Craig A EricksonDivision of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnet Avenue MLC 4002, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA. craig.erickson@cchmc.org.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4512-398X
Rebecca C ShafferDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Meredith WillDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Lauren M SchmittDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Paul HornDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA.
Kathy HirstThompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA.
Ernest V PedapatiDivision of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnet Avenue MLC 4002, Cincinnati, OH, 45229, USA.
Nicole OberPsychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, USA.
Rameshwari V TumuluruPsychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, USA.
Benjamin L HandenPsychiatry, Pediatrics, Psychology, and Education Departments, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, USA.
David Q BeversdorfThompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA.
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center · USUniversity of Pittsburgh · USUniversity of Missouri · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Neuroinflammatory mechanisms have been implicated in the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Minocycline is a matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor 9 (MMP9) inhibitor tetracycline antibiotic with known anti-inflammatory properties. In preclinical animal models of ASD, minocycline has demonstrated potential positive effects on phenotypes that may have relevance to ASD. We conducted the first placebo-controlled study of minocycline in ASD. This double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial employed four week treatment periods with a two week washout period. Twenty-four 12-22 year olds (mean age 17.4 years; range 12.9-22.5 years) with ASD were enrolled. Overall minocycline was well tolerated. No minocycline-associated clinical changes were noted with treatment on any performance or clinician or caregiver completed measures were noted. We hypothesize that either minocycline does not have potential therapeutic effects in ASD or our project was underpowered to define potential subject subgroups who may potentially respond positively to this drug.

Indexed as

Anti-Bacterial AgentsAutism Spectrum DisorderMinocyclineAdolescentChildCross-Over StudiesDouble-Blind MethodFemaleHumansMaleProof of Concept StudyTreatment OutcomeYoung AdultAnti-Bacterial AgentsMinocyclineAutismAutism spectrum disorderClinical trialMinocycline

Identifiers

PMID38102393
OpenAlexW4389781093

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.