We’re excited to share that Wesley Kephart, one of our graduate students, presented his poster, “Acoustic Measures of Vocal Quality as Early Biomarkers of Disease Progression in Women with the FMR1 Premutation,” at the 2025 Fall Voice Conference, held in Charlotte, NC, from September 25–27.

Wesley’s project provides valuable insight into how reduced vocal quality can distinguish women with the FMR1 premutation who have FXTAS from those who do not, and how these vocal characteristics are associated with greater severity of FXTAS-related neuromotor signs in the premutation.

Thank you, Wesley, for your hard work and dedication in the lab – we’re so proud of you for sharing your research with the broader scientific community! Special thanks also go to his supervisory team: Dr. Laura Friedman (UT Austin), Dr. Heather Bonilha (University of South Carolina), and Dr. Jessica Klusek (University of South Carolina).