How do scientists investigate diseases? We take for granted that medical researchers will use test tubes and computers in their search, but what exactly are they searching for? They are looking for the answers to three basic questions:

• Is there a disease?
• What causes it?
• Can we prevent, treat, or cure it?

The answers to the questions above do not always come in that order, and answering all three questions usually takes years of work, done by many investigators.

That is why Dr. Roscoe Brady's team at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) is rare. Dr. Brady's research into Gaucher disease answered all three questions, and continues to strive for better treatments and a cure for Gaucher disease. This exhibit examines how medical researchers study diseases by focusing on one disease.

For your convenience, we've highlighted words in blue from the glossary, throughout the exhibit. Simply click on the blue text, and you will be taken to the exhibit's glossary.

Dr Roscoe Brady with a patient