Clinical trials

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine the association between near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS)-derived mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) capacity of the vastus lateralis muscles, and both local muscular endurance capacity and local muscular fatigability of the thigh muscles in young adults. Additionally, this trial aims to determine the effect of acute taurine supplementation on local muscular endurance capacity and local muscular fatigability when compared to a placebo condition. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Will there be a positive correlation between NIRS rate constant (a marker of mitochondrial function) and local muscular endurance capacity, along with a negative correlation between NIRS rate constant and local muscular fatigability? 2. Will acute taurine supplementation lead to improvements in local muscular endurance capacity and local muscular fatigability when compared to a placebo condition? Participants will: 1. Complete a NIRS assessment to non-invasively assess the mitochondrial capacity of both vastus lateralis muscles 2. Complete two acute supplementation assessment visits (separated by 7-10 days) which involve small blood collections before and after taurine or placebo supplementation 3. Perform a single-leg extension time-to-exhaustion test to measure local muscular endurance capacity on one leg, along with a repeated maximal voluntary isometric contraction fatigue index test to measure local muscular fatigability on the opposite leg, during each acute supplementation assessment visit.

Children on the autism spectrum sometimes have difficulty learning new words and using the newly taught information in different situations. In this study, the investigators are testing whether strategies that have been found to improve word learning in non-autistic children will also help autistic children. Specifically, the investigators aim to test whether autistic children learn words more successfully if novel words are taught by repeating the words to the child (re-study) or if the novel words are taught first with labeling each word and then quizzing the child (repeated quizzing). The main questions it aims to answer are: * When teaching nouns (names of exotic animals), is learning stronger if autistic children re-study or engage in repeated quizzing of the newly taught words? * When teaching adjectives (visible features of objects, like a bumpy chair), is learning stronger if autistic children re-study or engage in repeated quizzing of the newly taught adjectives? * Does the word learning condition (re-study vs. repeated quizzing) impact whether autistic children are more successful in demonstrating their knowledge of the newly taught words in different contexts? * Are autistic features related to patterns of word learning? Participants will: * Learn new words with half of the words being taught in one way (re-study) and the other half of the words being taught in the other way (repeated quizzing). * Participate in 5-minute and 1-week tests of the newly taught words to measure child learning. * Complete other language, thinking, and autism clinical assessments.

Pharmaceutical and neurosurgical treatments reliably ameliorate the cardinal motor symptoms in PD but, they often yield inconsistent outcomes for speech and voice disorders, with some studies showing exacerbation of pre-treatment deficits. Therefore, it is crucial to develop and optimize novel approaches that could simultaneously improve speech and voice deficits in PD and facilitate existing behavioral interventions. This project will investigate the immediate and short-term effects of multiple sessions of HD-tDCS over the left SMA on speech and voice deficits in PD.