Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Huntington's Disease: A Timeline, Brian Kerlin, Brandon Polimeni, Michaelangelo Ortega

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

The purpose of this investigation is to examine the discovery, treatment, social impact, and current research for Huntington’s disease (HD) to provide a foundation to analyze future research towards a cure. Huntington’s disease was first comprehensively described in 1872 by George Huntington. HD is an autosomal-dominant, neurodegenerative disorder that affects approximately 2.7 per 100,000. Individuals with HD present with involuntary muscle movement, cognitive decline, and personality alterations arising at a mean age of 35 years. Symptoms are subtle at first, but as the disease progresses over 15-20 years, the individual’s ability to talk diminishes and their mental abilities decline into …