Neurodegenerative disorder

• A disease of the CNS characterized by neuronal loss in specific parts of the CNS
  • Most involve brain, though some involve lower motor neurons
• Includes the following:
  • Cerebral cortex
    • Alzheimer disease, which starts in the hippocampus and spreads to the frontal lobes and motor cortex
    • Frontotemporal dementia syndromes, including Pick disease
  • Basal ganglia
    • Parkinson disease, which affects the substantia nigra
    • Huntington disease, which affects the striatum
  • Motor neurons
    • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which affects both upper and lower motor neurons