Study explores speech as marker in rare neurodegenerative disease
pharmafile | April 27, 2026 | News story | Research and Development | SynaptixBio, neurodegenerative disease
SynaptixBio has highlighted the potential of speech analysis as a non-invasive way to track disease progression in neurodegenerative conditions, as a new study gets underway in patients with H-ABC.
The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in partnership with speech analytics company Redenlab and facilitated by SynaptixBio, will assess whether changes in communication can act as an indicator of brain health.
The study is open to patients aged from six months to adulthood worldwide and is designed to capture a wide range of communication methods, including speech, sign language, gestures and assistive devices.
SynaptixBio Chief Medical Officer Uwe Meya said speech could play a role in identifying early treatment effects, adding: “Speech parameters may be powerful tools for detecting early treatment effects prior to established clinical rating scales.”
Although speech-based measures are not yet widely accepted by regulators, the company said it plans to include them as exploratory endpoints in future clinical trials. These metrics could help identify early signs of treatment effect before changes are detected using established clinical rating scales.
The study will be conducted entirely online and is available in multiple languages, allowing families to participate remotely. SynaptixBio has supported recruitment by connecting researchers with patient groups in the UK and US but is not directly involved in the study.
Redenlab said advances in digital analysis, including artificial intelligence, could enable more objective assessment of speech patterns such as clarity, pause length and vocabulary use. It added these approaches may complement or improve on traditional clinician-rated measures, which can be variable.
SynaptixBio is developing an antisense oligonucleotide therapy targeting the underlying genetic cause of H-ABC, although its lead candidate remains at a pre-clinical stage. The company said insights from speech analysis could help shape future trials and improve understanding of how treatments affect patients’ day-to-day lives.
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