Publication: Pathological changes in dendrites of substantia nigra neurons in Parkinson's disease: a Golgi study
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Date
1991
Authors
Patt, Stephan ; Gertz, Hermann-Josef ; Gerhard, Lieselotte ; Cervós-Navarro, J.
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Publisher
Murcia : F. Hernández
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DOI
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info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Description
Abstract
Neurons of the substantia nigra show
severe morphological changes in Parkinson's disease.
Pathological alterations of cell bodies have been
described, whereas those of neuronal processes have
hardly been investigated. Golgi impregnation has
been the chosen method for demonstrating neuronal
processes and dendritic and somatic spines. We
therefore used the Golgi-Braitenberg method to
qualitatively and semi-quantitatively study the
substantia nigra of eight patients with Parkinson's
disease compared with eight control cases. Golgi
impregnation of substantia nigra neurons was good in al1
control cases. In full agreement with the analysis of
Braak and Braak (1986) three neuronal types within the
substantia nigra were found. In cases of Parkinson's
disease, severe pathological changes such as decrease of
dendritic length, loss of dendritic spines and severa1
types of dendritic varicosities were found only in the
melanin-containing pars compacta neurons. Pars
reticulata nerve cells were intact. These findings support
the predominant role played by the dopaminergic
efferent pathway in the degenerative process. The
afferent pathway was not affected. This suggests that the
substantia nigra lesion is primary in Parkinson's disease.
Loss of neurons found in H & E sections
corresponded to a lesser amount of impregnated pars
compacta neurons in cases with Parkinson's disease
when compared to controls. Evidences exist that the
duration of the disease may be related to the extent of
pathologically altered Golgi-impregnated pars compacta
cells. The amount of Lewy bodies in H & E sections
corresponded to the quantity of round varicosities in
impregnated pars compacta neurons. These round
dendritic varicosities were considered to be Lewy body
inclusions. They seem to have no influence on the
dendritic spine density and morphology in most cases.
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