biology

Parkinson's UK

Parkinson's UK is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Parkinson's UK rather than just read about it. In short: Parkinson's UK is a Parkinson's research and support charity in the United Kingdom. In April 2010, the Parkinson's Disease Society changed its name to become Parkinson's UK.

Key takeaways

Parkinson's UK belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Parkinson's UK to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Parkinson's UK from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Parkinson's UK is a Parkinson's research and support charity in the United Kingdom. In April 2010, the Parkinson's Disease Society changed its name to become Parkinson's UK. Its aims are to improve the quality of life for people affected by Parkinson's and find a cure for the condition. Parkinson's UK is the largest charity funder of research into Parkinson's in the UK. It funds research aimed at finding better treatments and improving the understanding of Parkinson's and its causes. It raises money through donations, legacies, community fundraising, events and corporate partnerships. The charity offers support and information to people affected by Parkinson's, their families and carers through a network of 465 local groups across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

History The Parkinson's Disease Society (Parkinson's UK) was formed in February 1969 by Mali Jenkins (4 July 1907 – 11 March 1989). Initially the organisation had 3 simple aims:

to help patients and their relatives with the problems arising from Parkinson's to collect and disseminate information on Parkinson's to encourage and provide funds for research into Parkinson's Parkinson's UK now focuses on research in addition to support. The charity has also expanded to improve services for people affected by Parkinson's through education and training for professionals and campaigning.

President Jane Asher has been President of Parkinson's UK since 2007 and has a brother-in-law diagnosed with Parkinson's. Asher has been involved in launching campaigns to improve research into Parkinson's.

Research Parkinson's UK is the largest charitable funder of Parkinson's research in the UK and have so far invested more than £50million in research. The charity aims to 'find a cure and improve life for everyone affected by Parkinson's'. In 2009 the charity produced 'Four decades of discovery' – a booklet describing the key research achievements of the charity since 1969 which included the development of new drugs, an improved understanding of Parkinson's, and better diagnosis and care for people with the condition. In 2010 the charity spent £4.6 million on new Parkinson's research projects and launched a new 5-year research strategy called 'Our plan to cure Parkinson's'. The new strategy focuses on four central challenges:

Understanding why nerve cells die in Parkinson's Developing new animal models of Parkinson's Faster, better drug screening Finding 'biomarkers' for earlier diagnosis These priorities reflect the charity's focus on basic laboratory research to understand what causes Parkinson's, how it develops, and translational research to develop new treatments that slow, stop or reverse the condition. The charity also funds research to help better understand Parkinson's to improve treatment and care for people currently living with the condition. The charity produces a free research magazine, Progress, once a year discussing current Parkinson's research.

Grant schemes Parkinson's UK provides funding to UK-based researchers through a range of grants schemes, including:

Project grants – tackling major research challenges Innovation grants – exploring original research ideas Career development awards – nurturing outstanding talent PhD studentships – attracting the best graduates Parkinson's UK is a member of the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC). This means that every application for research funding is subject to the same strict and transparent review process and is rigorously assessed by an independent panel of experts and people affected by Parkinson's.

Parkinson's UK Brain Bank Parkinson's UK funds the Parkinson's UK Brain Bank at Imperial College London which provides brain tissue to UK and international Parkinson's researchers. In April 2009 Parkinson's UK held an appeal to increase the number of people signed up to the brain donor register. Jane Asher, Jeremy Paxman and John Stapleton were some of the people who pledged to donate their brain to Parkinson's research following the campaign.

Criticism

In June 2011 the charity was one of four organisations subject to a national boycott campaign by an animal rights group regarding their usage of animal testing. "Animal Aid plans to take out a series of newspaper adverts urging the public to stop giving money to Cancer Research UK, the British Heart Foundation, the Alzheimer's Society and Parkinson's UK unless they end their support for animal testing."

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Parkinson's UK

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Parkinson's UK claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Parkinson's UK before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Parkinson's UK ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Parkinson's UK

In research: Parkinson's UK appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Parkinson's UK in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Parkinson's UK is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Health charities in the United Kingdom, Health in the City of Westminster, Neurology organizations, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Parkinson's UK outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Parkinson's UK in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Parkinson's UK means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Parkinson's UK out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Parkinson's UK in simple terms?

Parkinson's UK is a Parkinson's research and support charity in the United Kingdom. In April 2010, the Parkinson's Disease Society changed its name to become Parkinson's UK.

Why does Parkinson's UK matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Parkinson's UK?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Parkinson's UK.