Huntington’s disease is a rare neurodegenerative disorder that plagues families. The culprit responsible for Huntington’s is a trinucleotide (CAG) repeat expansion within the huntingtin (HTT) gene [ii]. A trinucleotide repeat expansion is when the machinery responsible for DNA replication slips while writing which leads to repetitive DNA sequences. If the machinery slips while its writing an exon portion of the DNA, which are the coding regions, a disease will occur [i]. In the case of Huntington’s, the slippage occurred with the HTT gene resulting in several CAG repeats within this gene. CAG codes for glutamine which is one of most … Continue reading Huntington’s Disease – A Condensed Overview

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is a common ailment that occurs after trauma such as lacerations of nerve tissue, crush injuries, gunshot wounds, drug injection injury, electrical injury and more. It can also occur due to autoimmune diseases, diabetes which is the leading cause of polyneuropathy, and vascular problems. PNI has more than 100 types of neuropathy and affects more than 20 million people in the United States. This condition currently has scare options for treatment. [iii] It can range from afflicted individuals experiencing a severe consistent burning sensation to total loss of sensation in the affected body part. The extent … Continue reading The Degrees of Peripheral Nerve Injury

We have heard about different colors in light influencing certain emotions and behaviors but how about taking it a few steps further? Imagine living in a world where a person suffering from a behavioral disorder, for example an obsessive compulsive disorder, can undergo a procedure to be cured. They can go back to living a more functional life and do whatever they love without any obstacles after a clinic visit. A person with a broken bone can speed up the recovery process and get out of the cast within a couple weeks rather than a month. The field of Optogenetics … Continue reading The Brilliance of Optogenetics