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There has been much discussion on the list recently about donating brains for Parkinson research. Since this is a subject which has been very much a part of my life for the last five years, I felt it was important to pass on to all of you the experience I have had. First of all, Sid felt that one of the most important contributions he could make to further Parkinson research was to donate his brain to a Parkinson only brain bank. We enrolled in the program several years before his death. Many of you may remember that he died very suddenly and expectedly. At such a time, the thought of brain donations may well be the last thing of which you think. However, I did remember about a half hour after his death, and raced home from the hospital to get the necessary information on how to proceed. From that point on, everything that could go wrong, did. Finally, in May of this year, I learned that his brain was completely useless for research. It is too long a story to put on the list, but anyone who would like to know more about what happened can email me privately and I will send you a copy of the article I wrote about it. My purpose it not to scare anyone, but rather to alert you to the pitfalls that can occur so you can avoid them. Re colon tissue appeal, I put that out at the request of Dr. Ronald Pfeiffer, University of Tennessee (formerly University of Nebraska). He and his colleagues have done the most to research the gastrointestinal effects of PD. I don't know if he is still collecting colon tissue because the request was issued several years ago. I have not had any luck in getting the national foundations to print my article, but any local or regional newsletter editor who is interested has my permission to use it. Donna Dorros, cg for Sid-30/68 (dec. 1993) email: [log in to unmask] **********************************************************/ /* DDorros */ /* [log in to unmask] */ /* */ /* Sent from Capital City Cyberlink */ /**********************************************************/