Parkinsons Disease and Tourettes Syndrome Essay -- Biology Essays Re

shaking palsy complaint and Tourettes Syndrome Parkinsons Disease is a literally crippling neurodegenerative disorder, manifested in about 1% of the aged population. slew who have Parkinsons Disease stepwise lose control of their stools specific symptoms include, tremor, slowness of movement, stiffness, difficulty in walking, and pass of balance. (1) Evidence strongly suggests that Parkinsons Disease is the result of severe cell pass in the substantia nigra. This brain structure is principally involved in the production of dopamine. (2) Dopamine, among otherwise functions, is the neurotransmitter involved in start of movement. Hence, the link between dopaminergic cell prejudice and cessation of voluntary movement, as manifested in Parkinsons Disease, seems established. (3) However, the applicability of this link seems to not end with Parkinsons Disease. If a severe deficit in dopamine induces cessation of movement and baseline levels of dopamine make voluntary, normal movem ent possible, can an excess of dopamine, or change magnitude effectiveness of dopamine, lead to involuntary saying of movement? Potentially, a marked excess, or increase in effectiveness, of dopamine will lead to a loss of control of movement, just as a shortage of dopamine will. However, in the former case, movement should be involuntarily manifested. If such(prenominal) manifestations indeed were observed, it would be fire to see if, in fact, dopamine excess, or dopamine at all, plays a role. Indeed, involuntary movements, commonly referred to as tics, are the primary symptoms of a disease called Tourettes Syndrome. The syndrome, named aft(prenominal) the person who first described it, Gilles de la Tourette, is a complex neurobehavioral disorder characteri... ...8,9,10) It is noteworthy, that these drugs, when used at excessive dosages, may lead to side effects such as muscular rigidity, tremor, slow movement, and other symptoms, which are very similar to the symptoms accomp anying Parkinsons. Also, these side effects can be counteracted by administration of l-Dopa, a drug commonly given to cut across severe freezing in Parkinsons patients. This evidence completes the picture that was anticipated when beginning to look at Parkinsons and a possible functional opposite. Normal movement does not suffice to serve as an opposite of Parkinsons the severe tics accompanying Tourettes Syndrome, however, do. The evidence form drug studies and binding research serves to elucidate the connection. mesh Sourceshttp//www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/17/9/3168http//www.mentalhealth.com/drug/p30-o01.htmlHead_1 Parkinsons Disease and Tourettes Syndrome Essay -- Biology Essays ReParkinsons Disease and Tourettes Syndrome Parkinsons Disease is a literally crippling neurodegenerative disorder, manifested in about 1% of the aged population. People who have Parkinsons Disease gradually lose control of their movements specific symptoms include, tremor, s lowness of movement, stiffness, difficulty in walking, and loss of balance. (1) Evidence strongly suggests that Parkinsons Disease is the result of severe cell loss in the substantia nigra. This brain structure is principally involved in the production of dopamine. (2) Dopamine, among other functions, is the neurotransmitter involved in initiation of movement. Hence, the link between dopaminergic cell loss and cessation of voluntary movement, as manifested in Parkinsons Disease, seems established. (3) However, the applicability of this link seems to not end with Parkinsons Disease. If a severe deficit in dopamine induces cessation of movement and baseline levels of dopamine make voluntary, normal movement possible, can an excess of dopamine, or increased effectiveness of dopamine, lead to involuntary manifestation of movement? Potentially, a marked excess, or increase in effectiveness, of dopamine will lead to a loss of control of movement, just as a shortage of dopamine will. Howev er, in the former case, movement should be involuntarily manifested. If such manifestations indeed were observed, it would be interesting to see if, in fact, dopamine excess, or dopamine at all, plays a role. Indeed, involuntary movements, commonly referred to as tics, are the primary symptoms of a disease called Tourettes Syndrome. The syndrome, named after the person who first described it, Gilles de la Tourette, is a complex neurobehavioral disorder characteri... ...8,9,10) It is noteworthy, that these drugs, when used at excessive dosages, may lead to side effects such as muscular rigidity, tremor, slow movement, and other symptoms, which are very similar to the symptoms accompanying Parkinsons. Also, these side effects can be counteracted by administration of l-Dopa, a drug commonly given to overcome severe freezing in Parkinsons patients. This evidence completes the picture that was anticipated when beginning to look at Parkinsons and a possible functional opposite. Normal mo vement does not suffice to serve as an opposite of Parkinsons the severe tics accompanying Tourettes Syndrome, however, do. The evidence form drug studies and binding research serves to elucidate the connection. Internet Sourceshttp//www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/17/9/3168http//www.mentalhealth.com/drug/p30-o01.htmlHead_1