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National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

 

 
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National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
 
 
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The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke is a part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research....
.

The NINDS conducts and supports research on brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
 and nervous system
Nervous system

The nervous system is a Neural network of specialized cells that communicate information about an animal's surroundings and itself. It processes this information and causes reactions in other parts of the body....
 disorders. Created by the U.S. Congress in 1950, NINDS is one of the more than two dozen research institutes and centers that comprise the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, located in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland

Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Presbyterian Church, built in 1820 and rebuilt in 1850, which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda....
, is an agency of the Public Health Service within the U.S.






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The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke is a part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research....
.

The NINDS conducts and supports research on brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
 and nervous system
Nervous system

The nervous system is a Neural network of specialized cells that communicate information about an animal's surroundings and itself. It processes this information and causes reactions in other parts of the body....
 disorders. Created by the U.S. Congress in 1950, NINDS is one of the more than two dozen research institutes and centers that comprise the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, located in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland

Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Presbyterian Church, built in 1820 and rebuilt in 1850, which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda....
, is an agency of the Public Health Service within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NINDS has occupied a central position in the world of neuroscience
Neuroscience

Neuroscience is a field devoted to the scientific study of the nervous system. The Society for Neuroscience was founded in 1969, but the study of the brain started a long time ago....
 for 50 years .

More than 600 disorders afflict the nervous system. Common disorders such as stroke
Stroke

A stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to a disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. According to the National Stroke Association, a "stroke" occurs when a blood clot blocks and artery or a blood vessel breaks, interrupting blood flow to an area of the brain....
, epilepsy
Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by recurrent unprovoked seizure s. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain....
, Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that often impairs the sufferer's motor skills and speech, as well as other functions....
, and autism
Autism

Autism is a Neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior....
 are well-known. Many other neurological disorders are rare—known only to the patients and families affected, their doctor
Physician

A physician, medical practitioner, doctor of medicine, or medical doctor practices medicine, and is concerned with maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease and injury....
s, and scientist
Scientist

A scientist, in the broadest sense, refers to any person that engages in a system activity to acquire knowledge or an individual that engages in such practices and traditions that are linked to schools of thought or philosophy....
s who look to rare disorders for clues to a general understanding of the brain as well as for treatments for specific diseases. Neurological disorders strike an estimated 50 million Americans each year, exacting an incalculable personal toll and an annual economic cost of hundreds of billions of dollars in medical expenses and lost productivity.

The mission of the NINDS is to reduce the burden of neurological disease—a burden borne by every age group, every segment of society, and people all over the world. To accomplish this goal the NINDS supports and conducts research, both basic and clinical, on the normal and disease
Disease

A disease or medical condition is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions, associated with specific symptoms and Medical signs....
d nervous system, fosters the training of investigators in the basic and clinical neurosciences, and seeks better understanding, diagnosis
Diagnosis

Diagnosis is the identification of the nature of anything, either by process of elimination or other analytical methods. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with slightly different implementations on the application of logic and experience to determine the cause and effect relationships....
, treatment, and prevention of neurological disorders.

Basic research pursues an understanding of the normal and abnormal structure and activities of the human nervous system. The knowledge gained from this research creates the foundation for diagnosing and treating brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
 disease. Some important areas of NINDS basic research include: biology
Biology

Biology is a branch of the natural sciences concerned with the study of living organisms and their interaction with each other and their environment ....
 of the cells of the nervous system, brain and nervous system development, genetics
Genetics

Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of heredity and Genetic variation in living organisms. The fact that living things inherit traits from their parents has been used since prehistoric times to improve crop plants and animals through selective breeding....
 of the brain, cognition
Cognition

Cognition is the science term for "the process of thought."Its usage varies in different ways in accord with different disciplines: For example, in psychology and cognitive science it refers to an information processing view of an individual's psychological Functionalism s....
 and behavior, neurodegeneration, brain plasticity and repair, neural signaling, learning and memory, motor control and integration, sensory function, and neural channels, synapses, and circuits. The great challenge of modern neuroscience is to translate the remarkable findings of basic science into useful therapies for those who suffer the devastating effects of neurological disorders.

Clinical research applies directly to mechanisms of the diseases of the nervous system which can then be translated into disease detection, prevention, and treatment, such as studies of brain imaging techniques, trials to test new drugs
Medication

A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine or medicament, can be loosely defined as any substance intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease....
, and development of novel therapies such as stem cell
Stem cell

Stem cells are Cell found in most, if not all, multi-cellular organisms. They are characterized by the ability to renew themselves through Mitosis cell division and Cellular differentiation into a diverse range of specialized cell types....
 implants and gene transfer. Some key areas of NINDS clinical research include: neurological consequences of AIDS
AIDS

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the HIV ....
, Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease , also called Alzheimer disease, Senile Dementia of the Alzheimer Type or simply Alzheimer's, is the most common form of dementia....
, brain tumor
Brain tumor

A brain tumor is an abnormal growth of cells within the brain or inside the skull, which can be cancerous or non-cancerous .It is defined as any cranium tumor created by abnormal and uncontrolled Mitosis, normally either in the brain itself , in the cranial nerves , in the brain envelopes , skull, pituitary and pineal gland, or spread from...
s, developmental disorder
Developmental disorder

Developmental disorders are disorders that occur at some stage in a child's development, often retarding the development. These may include psychology or physical disorders....
s, epilepsy, motor neuron
Motor neuron

In vertebrates, the term motor neuron classically applies to neurons located in the central nervous system that project their axons outside the CNS and directly or indirectly control muscles....
 diseases, muscular dystrophies
Muscular dystrophy

Muscular dystrophy refers to a group of genetics, hereditary muscle diseases that weaken the muscles that move the human body. Muscular dystrophies are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cell and biological tissue....
, multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the central nervous system, leading to demyelinating disease. Disease onset usually occurs in young adults, and it is more common in females....
, neurogenetic disorders, pain
Pain

Pain, in the sense of physical pain, is a typical sensory experience that may be described as the unpleasant awareness of a noxious stimulus or bodily harm....
, Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders, sleep disorder
Sleep disorder

A sleep disorder is a medical disorder of the sleep patterns of a person or animal. Some sleep disorders are serious enough to interfere with normal physical, mental and emotional functioning....
s, spinal cord
Spinal cord

The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of neuron and glia that extends from the brain. The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system....
 injury, stroke, and traumatic brain injury
Traumatic brain injury

Traumatic brain injury occurs when an outside force physical trauma the brain. TBI can be classified based on severity, mechanism , or other features ....
.

Most NINDS-funded research is conducted by extramural scientists in public and private institutions, such as universities, medical school
Medical school

A medical school is a tertiary educational institution?or part of such an institution?that teaches medicine.In addition to a medical degree program, some medical schools offer programs leading to a Master's Degree, Doctor of Philosophy , or other post-secondary education....
s, and hospitals. NINDS intramural scientists, working in the Institute’s laboratories, branches, and clinics, also conduct research in most of the major areas of neuroscience and on many of the most important and challenging neurological disorders.

The Institute’s interests, however, are not limited to NINDS programs. The Institute collaborates with other NIH components, as well as with other federal agencies, and with voluntary, professional and commercial organizations.

Former name of the Institute

Between 1975 and 1978 the Institute was referred to as the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke.

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