Huntington's Disease

Huntington's disease is an autosomal dominant disorder, which is found on the # 4 chromosome. George Huntington discovered it in 1872. It mainly has an effect on the nervous system. There are around 210,000 bases between D4S180 and D4S127. The disease itself is found in 2% of people in their childhood, and in 5% of the people they were older then 60. (Miller p 16) In the majority of the affected people the disease is detected between the ages of 35-45. In males the disease begins around the time of their childhood. However, in females it begins later in life. This severe symptom has a tendency for the condition to worsen as it is passed on from generation to generation. Huntington's disease is paternally inherited and new mutations are rare (about 1%). (Encarta Encyclopedia)

The basic biochemical defect has not yet been discovered. There is a high amount of quinolinic acid, a neurotoxin normally present in the brain. Quinolinic acid may be killing......

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Title: Huntington's Disease
Approximate Word Count: 579
Approximate Pages: 3 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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