Neurodegenerative Diseases

Neurodegenerative Diseases

A piece of well-oiled machinery consists of an intricate and complex system: there are well-organized processes, mechanisms within the device work efficiently, and multiple processes function simultaneously to subsequently perform various functions. What happens when there is a glitch in the machine? When there is something wrong, such as connections between intricate processes, which do not follow through, the machine fails to function properly. In some cases, there are not any adjustment or fallback mechanisms. At that point, the damage can be irreversible and the machinery is no longer salvageable. [However, this can illustrate the interactions and processes within the complex machinery.]

The human brain can react in much the same way. Neurodegenerative diseases are telltale signs of a "glitch" in the neural mechanical processes within the brain. Thus, pathological problems of the brain demonstrate how the brain controls movement and behavior. It is evident in the physical as well as emotional behavior. (5) It also illustrates the interaction between the central nervous system to the peripheral nervous system. There must be connections between neural activity within the brain and the rest of the central and peripheral nervous systems. One can also understand an illustration of the brain as being a "box" composed of interconnected smaller boxes. These integrated boxes in turn demonstrate the concept that, "Brain=Behavior=Being."

The purpose of this essay is to provide a general overview, as well as neurological overview, of the neurodegenerative disease, Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease. In doing so, it will show how the brain proves to be the center of behavior and creates the individual's sense...

... middle of paper ...

...The fact that one's neural communication is severed and eventually shuts down all body function control, is evident. The knowledge that one's brain is "riddled with holes" due to a proteinaceous infectious particle is speculative. Although many think that an individual is much more than mere neural connections, firing motor symphonies, neurotransmitters, and selective permeability, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease puts a new spin on individual identity. Ultimately, the patients or their loved ones do not focus on the CJD facts and figures. Their reality is that an individual slowly disintegrates before their eyes, the sense of "the Self" is lost.

Works Cited:

http://www.cjd.ed.ac.uk/path.htm

http://www.cjd.ed.ac.uk/intro.htm

http://www.cjd.ed.ac.uk./lancet.htm

Delcomyn, Fred. Foundations of Neurobiology , W.H.Freeman and Company Copyright 1997, pg.437.