Compound 106 (N1-(2-aminophenyl)-N7-p-tolylheptanediamide; see Figure 2A for structure and Methods S1 for synthetic methods), a derivative of 4b, was found to be highly active in increasing histone acetylation in cell culture and FXN mRNA levels in primary lymphocytes from FRDA patients (Figure 2, B and C). Here, FXN is linked to Friedreich ataxia.