Basic neurobiology.-Now that the HD gene has been located, investigators in the field of neurobiology-which encompasses the anatomy, physiology, and biochemistry of the nervous system-are continuing to study the HD gene with an eye toward understanding how it causes disease in the human body.
Clinical research.- Neurologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and other investigators are improving our understanding of the symptoms and progression of the disease in patients while attempting to develop new therapeutics.
Imaging.- Scientific investigations use technology that will enable scientists to see what the defective gene does to various structures in the brain and how it affects the body's chemistry and metabolism.
Animal models.- Laboratory animals, such as mice, are being bred in the hope of duplicating the clinical features of HD and can soon be expected to help scientists learn more about the symptoms and progression of the disease.
Fetal tissue research.- Investigators are implanting fetal tissue in rodents and nonhuman primates with the hope that success in this area will lead to understanding, restoring, or replacing functions typically lost by neuronal degeneration in individuals with HD.
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