title: Lewy bodies in Parkinson's disease are recognized by antibodies to complement proteins.
abstract: The substantia nigra (SN) in 11 Parkinson's disease (PD) patients and 5 neurologically normal controls was examined immunohistochemically using antibodies to various proteins of the complement system. In PD, but not in control SN, intra- and extraneuronal Lewy bodies and dendritic spheroid bodies were stained with anti-human C3d, C4d, C7 and C9 antibodies, but not with antibodies to C1q, fraction Bb of factor B or properdin. Axonal spheroid bodies in the nigrostriatal tract were not stained by any of the complement antibodies. However, complement-activated oligodendroglia were revealed by anti-C3d and anti-C4d antibodies in the PD substantia nigral area. These data indicate that some pathological structures in PD activate the classical complement pathway.
authors.affiliation: Kinsmen Laboratory of Neurological Research, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: P L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: McGeer
authors.forename: E G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: McGeer
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000906:Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D001369:Axons / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003167:Complement Activation; D003165:Complement System Proteins / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D003712:Dendrites / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007163:Immunosorbent Techniques; D016631:Lewy Bodies / Q000473:pathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009836:Oligodendroglia / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D000906:Antibodies; D003165:Complement System Proteins