Biology, Eighth Edition (Raven)

Objective: Identify the genetic brain disorder known as VWM and detail the research around learning more about the disease and attempts to curtail it.

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1.		Which of the following statements would best describe the symptoms faced by the child Nathan Van Vleck?
			A)	Reduced intelligence and coordination since a toddler.
			B)	Inability to talk and walk since birth.
			C)	Steady decline in ability to walk which eventually led to a wheelchair and death.
			D)	Inability to hear and remember that came on as her reached young childhood.
2.		What does VWM stand for?
			A)	Vanishing white matter
			B)	Vestibular well maintenance
			C)	Ventricular water management
			D)	Vagus wired meninges
3.		How do children actually get VWM disease?
			A)	It is contracted by exposure to other children with the disorder
			B)	It is a virus that is spread from mother to child through the placenta
			C)	It is a genetic autosomal recessive disorder passed down from parents to child
			D)	It is the result of severe trauma to the brain during an accident
4.		How does VWM actually affect the brain matter?
			A)	Attacks the cells that make up a person’s white matter which form myelin.
			B)	It prohibits the neurotransmitter acetylcholine from being released from cell axons.
			C)	It causes the meninges to fill with fluid, putting added pressure onto the brain itself.
			D)	It prohibits the production of dopamine needed to signal motor neurons.
5.		In addition to the myelin producing cells being affected, what other cells were discovered to be involved in this disease?
			A)	fibroblasts
			B)	neurons
			C)	chondrocytes
			D)	astrocytes