Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Beulig, Alfred

Area of Concentration

Neurobiology

Abstract

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects movement, but also impacts non-motor systems. Approximately 30 million people worldwide are affected by Parkinson’s today (Alexander, 2004). Parkinson’s affects men and women at disproportionate rates and in different ways. The recorded sex differences in incidence of Parkinson’s, rate of progression, symptomatology, and response to treatments are believed to be attributed to a combination of genetic and hormonal factors. Inherently sexually dimorphic anatomy in the basal ganglia sheds some light on the basis of sex differences in this neurodegenerative disorder; and studies of steroid hormone treatments have elucidated the neuroprotective role of estrogen in the midbrain. When one considers the ambiguous origins of the disorder, the debilitating effects associated with the progression of symptoms, and the pervasive incidence of the disease throughout the population, disparities associated with the differences between sexes are worthy of scrutiny and continued research to develop better individualized treatments.

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