Huntington's Disease Model - Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative genetic disorder affects muscle coordination leading to cognitive decline and psychiatric manifestations. HD patients exhibit a diverse set of symptoms with well-recognized emotional, cognitive and motor components. It typically becomes noticeable at middle age. Although onset is generally within the fourth or fifth decade, the disease can start at any time from early childhood until very old age with a mean duration of 15-20 years. Symptoms of the disease may be different between individuals and among affected members of the same family, but the progress is predictable for most individuals. As the disease advances, patients show uncoordinated, jerky body movements, decline in mental abilities, along with behavioral (physical abilities are gradually impeded until coordinated movement becomes very difficult) and psychiatric problems (mental abilities generally decline into dementia).
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