The CANDY Project
In Europe, 10-15% of children and adults or 50 to 75 million individuals are affected by neurodevelopmental conditions, such as autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), intellectual disability (ID), motor problems and language disorders. It is not hard to imagine that one of these conditions alone can have a serious impact on a person’s life. What makes the situation even worse is the fact that several of these conditions often co-exist and, on top of that, go along with somatic illnesses, such as epilepsy. This significantly affects both life expectancy and quality of life and there are no effective treatments to date.
In the CANDY project, we investigate the biological links between these neurodevelopmental conditions and co-existing somatic illnesses and how treatment and monitoring of affected patients can be improved.
%
of the EU population are affected by Neurodevelopmental Conditions such as autism, ADHD or ID
Autism
People on the autism spectrum experience persistent difficulties with social interaction and communication, display restricted and repetitive behaviour and/or have special circumscribed interests and activities. They often also experience sensory difficulties, such as increased or reduced sensitivity to light, sound, colour, smell, taste or touch.
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ADHD
ADHD belongs also to the group of neurodevelopmental conditions with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence. It manifests itself by problems with attention span and self-regulation and/or by impulsivity and high physical restlessness (hyperactivity). A clinical diagnosis is made when persistent symptoms are associated with impairments of functioning at home, school, workplace or during leasure time. However, symptoms alone are not sufficient for a diagnosis.
ID
Intellectual disability (ID) is characterized by significant limitations both in intellectual functioning (reasoning, learning, problem solving) and in adaptive behavior, which covers a range of everyday social and practical skills. This disability originates before the age of 18.
Partners
European countries
Project duration (months)
Our Research
Read more about the “problem” and the opportunity in CANDY, and more detailed information about biomarkers, the microbiome, neuroinflammation and critical periods.
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The Team »
CANDY PIP Study
In CANDY we are collaborating with the AIMS-2-TRIALS project and their study “Pre-School Brain Imaging and Behaviour Project (PIP)”. PIP is the first study to track how pre-school children with and without autism develop over time and across Europe.
Multiplex Study
This is the first study to track the heritability of rare genetic risk variants for several neurodevelopmental conditions. Neurodevelopmental conditions likely result from a combination of both rare genetic variants and many common low-risk variants.
News & Events
CANDY 4th General Assembly Meeting
In January 2023 we finally could meet for our first face-to-face General Assembly Meeting within our CANDY project. This special occasion deservs also a special location: Paris. After 3 years of online and virtual meetings, we were very happy that so many consortium...
Martien Kas is new ECNP President
In October 2022, the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) announced within their annual Congress its new ECNP Executive Committee for 2022 - 2025. The commitee is led by Martien Kas from the University of Groningen, who is also part of teh CANDY...
CANDY Publishable Summary #1
CANDY has completed its first Periodic Report and its has been approved by our EIC-Project Office. Please find here the publishable summary of the first 18 months of our exciting project. Summary of the context and overall objectives Between 50 to 75 million children...
As part of the “Horizon 2020” programme, the European Commission is funding the five-year CANDY research project with a total of six million Euro under grant agreement No. 847818.