http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/huntingtons-disease/basics/definition/con-20030685
http://www.hdsa.org
http://www.alz.org/dementia/huntingtons-disease-symptoms.asp
http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/HuntingtonsDisease.htm
http://www.brainfacts.org/diseases-disorders/degenerative-disorders/articles/2012/huntingtons-disease/
Huntington's disease-also referred to as "HD"- is a hereditary brain disorder that causes the progressive breakdown (degeneration) and death of nerve cells in the brain. HD affects people of all races all over the world. It was named for doctor George Huntington of Long Island, New York in the year 1872. He described this disease as "hereditary chorea". Chorea, …show more content…
The United States currently reports 30,000 cases of HD, and over 200,000 people are considered at risk (www.hdsa.org). Regarding prevalence, Huntington's disease affects an estimated 3 to 7 per 100,000 people of European ancestry. The disorder appears to be less common in some other populations, including African Americans and Japanese. Huntington's Disease has a broad impact on a person's functional abilities. It affects both the basal ganglia, which controls coordination, and the brain cortex, which serves as the command center for thought, perception, and memory. Contracting HD results in movement, cognitive, and psychiatric disorders-meaning it affects the body, mind, and emotions. It is a devastating disease, that eventually robs the affected individual of the ability to walk, talk, think, and reason. Most people with Huntington's disease develop signs and symptoms in their 30s or 40s, but the onset …show more content…
Scientists identified this defective gene in 1993. The Huntington’s disease mutation is an expanded triplet repeat — a kind of molecular stutter in the DNA. This abnormal gene codes for an abnormal version of the protein called Huntington. The Huntington protein, whose normal function is still unknown, is widely distributed in the brain and appears to be associated with proteins involved in transcription (turning genes on), protein turnover, and energy production. Scientists suspect that Huntington’s disease is caused by the gain of a new and toxic function among these protein. HD is considered a disease of families based on it's strong genetic component. Everyone is born with the gene that can carry huntington, but the disease is caused by an abnormal copy of the gene passing from parent to child. Huntington's disease is an autosomal dominant disorder, which means that a person needs only one copy of the defective gene to develop the disorder. With the exception of genes on the sex chromosomes, a person inherits two copies of every gene — one from each parent. A parent with a defective Huntington gene could pass along the defective copy of the gene or the healthy copy (mayoclinic.org). Every child that is born to an affected parent has a 50% chance of being born with the gene that causes the disease, males and
http://www.hdsa.org
http://www.alz.org/dementia/huntingtons-disease-symptoms.asp
http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/HuntingtonsDisease.htm
http://www.brainfacts.org/diseases-disorders/degenerative-disorders/articles/2012/huntingtons-disease/
Huntington's disease-also referred to as "HD"- is a hereditary brain disorder that causes the progressive breakdown (degeneration) and death of nerve cells in the brain. HD affects people of all races all over the world. It was named for doctor George Huntington of Long Island, New York in the year 1872. He described this disease as "hereditary chorea". Chorea, …show more content…
The United States currently reports 30,000 cases of HD, and over 200,000 people are considered at risk (www.hdsa.org). Regarding prevalence, Huntington's disease affects an estimated 3 to 7 per 100,000 people of European ancestry. The disorder appears to be less common in some other populations, including African Americans and Japanese. Huntington's Disease has a broad impact on a person's functional abilities. It affects both the basal ganglia, which controls coordination, and the brain cortex, which serves as the command center for thought, perception, and memory. Contracting HD results in movement, cognitive, and psychiatric disorders-meaning it affects the body, mind, and emotions. It is a devastating disease, that eventually robs the affected individual of the ability to walk, talk, think, and reason. Most people with Huntington's disease develop signs and symptoms in their 30s or 40s, but the onset …show more content…
Scientists identified this defective gene in 1993. The Huntington’s disease mutation is an expanded triplet repeat — a kind of molecular stutter in the DNA. This abnormal gene codes for an abnormal version of the protein called Huntington. The Huntington protein, whose normal function is still unknown, is widely distributed in the brain and appears to be associated with proteins involved in transcription (turning genes on), protein turnover, and energy production. Scientists suspect that Huntington’s disease is caused by the gain of a new and toxic function among these protein. HD is considered a disease of families based on it's strong genetic component. Everyone is born with the gene that can carry huntington, but the disease is caused by an abnormal copy of the gene passing from parent to child. Huntington's disease is an autosomal dominant disorder, which means that a person needs only one copy of the defective gene to develop the disorder. With the exception of genes on the sex chromosomes, a person inherits two copies of every gene — one from each parent. A parent with a defective Huntington gene could pass along the defective copy of the gene or the healthy copy (mayoclinic.org). Every child that is born to an affected parent has a 50% chance of being born with the gene that causes the disease, males and