Successes and Failures

Successes:
- Using my time effectively by taking notes and recording the things I need to do for my project when speaking with my supervisor.
- Being able to find lots of relevant information about Parkinson's from a variety of sources
- Although I failed to keep up to date with my calendar deadlines I rescheduled my project in a different way that was easier to follow.
- Even though I was unsure about the structure of my report I kept on asking my supervisor until I understood.
- Keeping a record of all the information I find on my blog in 'bibliography' so it was easier to find information when writing my report and referencing at the end.
- Being organised with the information I found by saving them on a separate document for later use on my report.
- Learned lots about the brain and ended up knowing parts of the brain before it was taught in my biology lesson, so it helped with my studies. I also gained lots of knowledge about Parkinson's disease, understanding its characteristics to what happens in the brain and the treatments available. 


Failures:
- Indecisive about my focus point which prevented me from starting my report much earlier.
- Not following my plan on google calendar at the start
- Spending too much time researching rather than starting to write up my report
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Appointment with my supervisor

I arranged a time tomorrow to see my supervisor and check my report with her to make adjustments before handing it in on Friday. I'm relieved that although I just understood my focus point for the report I still managed to complete most of it. I think because my new focus point made sense to me and was easier to work towards I was able to get on with it straight away whereas my other focus points were challenging when it came to finding specific information that I thought I had but didn't.

My new focus point...

I spoke with my supervisor and I explained that i couldnt find research projects that presented their results and only had background information about the research going to be done. Then we decided to go through everything i'd done on my report and came to a solution of comparing the treatments that are available for Parkinson's and explaining why they might be good or bad with evidence from the results of research projects i find. Im happy with this structure as it makes more sense and is much easier to make comparisons and construct my opinions to. 

Completing report this week!

I'm going to show my report to my supervisor on Tuesday to make final adjustments before I hand it in. I've also started working on my presentation which has to be ready by 12th of March. Unfortunately I couldnt complete my report on the weekend which I had planned to do so. 

a SMALL plan...

Im planning to complete my report on the weekend and maybe start working on my presentation. 

Decision made!

I think I might stick to my original idea about looking for research projects that are working to find a cure or better treatment. I decided on this when I found this site :(http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/current_research/better_treatments_and_a_cure.aspx)
For example investigating if LRRK2 may provide a target for new treatments for Parkinson's or whether we can personalise treatment for Parkinson's disease.

Websites on Parkinson's

1. http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/research_achievements/better_drug_treatments.aspx
2. http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/research_achievements/hopes_for_a_cure.aspx
3. http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/get_involved_in_our_research/list_of_uk_research_studies.aspx

These are sites that I might want to come back to when I writing my report.

Research Projects

I found research programmes not to do with finding a better treatment or cure Parkinson's but on ways to manage the symptoms of condition. Now I'm not sure whether I should only focus on projects that are searching for a better treatment.
This site (http://www.parkinsons.org.uk/research/current_research/life_with_parkinsons.aspx#compulsivebehaviour_piccini) gives a list of the research projects that Parkinson's UK is funding. But there is one that I found interesting: 


Should we start Parkinson's treatment earlier?


Professor Kailash wants to know if treating people with Parkinson's earlier helps the brain cope with losing dopamine nerve cells. If early treatment is beneficial this project could lead to changes in clinical practice.

• Project will cost  £109,795 and take over 2 years

Google calendar...

I've decided to change my deadline for the literature review for this Thursday. The hand in date for the report and log is getting closer so I might have to complete my report by this week to have time to check it with my supervisor and then work on improvements.

Gene therapy successful in Parkinson's

Treating Parkinson's disease with gene therapy has been shown to be successful in clinical trials for the first time


Patients with Parkinson's have reduced levels of a chemical - GABA - in part of the brain known as the subthalamic nucleus.The researchers created a virus which "infects" cells with a gene to increase GABA production.

In the trial, 22 patients had the virus injected into their brains while 23 patients had "sham surgery", to make them think they had the virus injected. Their motor function was then scored over six months.

Patients who had gene therapy showed a 23.1% improvement in their motor score, those with sham surgery improved by 12.7%.

However there have been concerns about the safety of gene therapy. In 1999, Jesse Gelsinger died during a trial in the US and there were cases of leukaemia after treatment in France.

Dr Michelle Gardner, research development manager at Parkinson's UK, said: "This research shows the promise of gene therapy for neurological conditions like Parkinson's, but further research is still needed.

"We still don't know for how long the benefits of this treatment may last, or whether there may be long-term problems due to introducing viruses into the brain."

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12758230)

Skin cells to brain cells...

A Californian team say they have managed to convert human skin cells directly into functioning brain cells.

The scientists used genetically modified viruses to introduce four different "transcription factors" into foetal skin cells. These transcription factors play a role in the "reading" of DNA and the encoding of proteins within the cell.

They found the introduction of these four transcription factors had the effect of switching a small portion of the skin cells into cells which functioned like neurons.

"It was known that it was possible to change a specialised cell back into a stem cell, what's called an induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS), but it was not known whether a specialised cell could be pushed into another direction, other than backwards."

The technique might one day also be used to create new brain cells which could be transplanted into patients with neurological disorders such as Parkinson's.

The advantage of these neurons is that its created from the patient's own skin, these cells would be an exact match for the patient, although there would be many obstacles to overcome, not least the challenge of producing enough of the right type of brain cells. 

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13567321)

Vitamin D and Parkinson's

Looking at the health sector of BBC news I found recent information on Parkinsons: http://www.bbc.co.uk/search/news/?q=Parkinsons


For example I found out that there is shown to be a link between vitamin D and Parkinson's disease.


Previous studies have shown that the substantia nigra, part of the brain that's most affected in Parkinson's, has high levels of vitamin D receptor, suggesting vitamin D may be important for normal functions of dopamine producing cells

One theory is that people with Parkinson's may be particularly vulnerable because their condition limits the amount of time they spend out of doors. However, scientists say it may also be possible that low vitamin D levels are in some way related to the genesis and origin of the disease.

The researchers examined vitamin D levels in 100 people with Parkinson's, 100 with Alzheimer's disease and 100 who were healthy. The groups were matched for age, and economic circumstance. Among the Parkinson's group 23% of patients had vitamin D levels so low that they could be described as deficient. In the Alzheimer's group the figure was 16%, and in the healthy group 10%.

researchers do not yet know if the vitamin deficiency is a cause or the result of having Parkinson's. Therefore Further research is required to determine at what stage the deficiency in vitamin levels occur in the brains of people with Parkinson's and whether the provision of a dietary supplement, or increased exposure to sunlight may help alleviate symptoms or have an effect on the rate of the condition's progression.
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7666749.stm)

I'm wondering now if further research has already been done and whether findings show that its a cause or result of having Parkinson's

Literature review

I've started working on the literature review of my report, where I present my arguments on the different research programmes for Parkinson's. I spoke to my supervisor and she advised me to use information from a range of sources to show a deep understanding of the issues around my topic and that I will also need to assess the sources I've used.

New deadlines to meet

I completed my report introduction, checked it with my supervisor and now i'm going to set myself new deadlines to complete the literature review.

Brain basics

Today I read more about the human brain from a book called 'The Human Brain and its disorders'. I feel like I've gained a better understanding of the different features of the brain and their specific functions which I believe I need to know as it will help me to comprehend the changes that occur in the brain of a patient suffering Parkinson's for when I write about the characteristics of the disease. I also think that I will be able to understand the information I find on research programmes so I can construct my opinions based on their work. From reading this book I found that a specialised region of the brain called the basal ganglia that lies beneath the cortex plays a critical role in movement control. This region is damaged in patients suffering Parkinson's disease that is shown from their unsteady movements. The book also provides case studies bringing theory to life, showing the practical relevance of the theoretical concepts introduced. The chapter I read is called 'brain basics' written by John Jefferys and Alison Cooper. This is a reliable source of information because each chapter is written by experts in their field and its a book published by the well trusted Oxford University Press. The book is also edited by Doug Richards, Tom Clark, Carl Clarke who all have some background knowledge about neurology.

Understanding the structure and functions of the human brain

I found a website for understanding how the brain works called http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/human-biology/brain.htm. It has useful diagrams and information on brain structure and its functions for example "Substantia nigra, is involved in voluntary movements; when it does not function, you have the tremored movements of Parkinson's disease". 


-The cerebral cortex is the largest part of your brain. It contains the frontal lobes, the motor cortex, sensory cortex and parietal lobes


-The brain is made up of around 100 billion nerve cells called neurons. Neurons have different functions and therefore come in different shapes for example motor neurons carry signals from the central nervous system to the outer parts (muscles, skin, glands) of your body. They have a cell body on one end, a long axon in the middle and dendrites on the other end . Neurons gather and transmit electrochemical signals to each other as way of communicating and transporting the signal around the body.


-Your brain is connected to your spinal cord by the brain stem


-Different areas of your brain control different activities:

Feedback on Report Introduction

I received an email from my supervisor on how I can improve my introduction. She advised me to start with a rationale for my work and to include why I have chosen to focus on Parkinson's and use secondary research rather than primary. She also said that I should write why I felt research into research programmes about Parkinson's is important. There's a lot I can add to my introduction so I might give myself a day to work on this. I think one of my successes on this project is being able to use the time I spend discussing with my supervisor effectively by taking notes and keeping a record on what I'll need to do.

Changing my title

I spoke with my supervisor about the report introduction and what to include. She told me to describe my choice of title and explain how I developed my ideas. Then I realised I had to change my title since I reconsidered my focus point on the essay. Now I'm rewriting my title and waiting feedback from my supervisor on my introduction that I had sent her. I will also add new deadlines on my calendar but on Saturday, after I come back from my biology field trip.

Completed my intro.

Tomorrow I'll be seeing my supervisor. My introduction is ready so I can check this with her. I've decided to see my supervisor every time I complete a section on my plan that I made and I could also ask questions as im there. By doing this I could save time checking my work at the end and also I would feel like I'm progressing in the right way. Tomorrow I'll also be adding new deadlines on my calendar.

Planning for my report

To get a clearer image of what I wanted to write about in my essay I created this diagram which has really helped me to understand my focus point for this project. I want to add more to my diagram/ plan after I speak with my supervisor and take notes of what I specifically need to include.  I also want to show my introduction to my supervisor so I can make changes afterwards and to make sure that im starting off right. Now im going to make a note of the questions I want to ask my supervisor on a table that I was given so I can keep a record of the questions and the outcome of the discussion I have. This is helpful in keeping me on track for this project.

Setting myself targets

I've added dates on my google calendar to meet with my supervisor as I found it useful discussing my ideas and getting feedback. Also taking notes and keeping a record of the things I will need to do meant that I was able to get the most out of my tutorials.

I did struggle to stick to the previous timeline I set for myself on google calendar, so now I decided it may help if I set a few deadlines at a time. Im hoping I'll be able to use the limited time I have left effectively, by setting myself targets on google calendar (eg completing the introduction of the report by sunday), to complete the report plus the presentation on time. I also want to make sure I have enough time to make final adjustments on the report with my supervisor.