Olfactory bulb lesions in Alzheimer's disease.
The olfactory bulb (OB), with its comparatively simple and well-delineated connectivity, presents an interesting system for examining cell-specific pathology in neurologic degenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). We have found that in AD the large, efferently projecting neurons (mitral cells) of the OB degenerate, typically without classical Alzheimer neurofibrillary changes. In some cases, with less severe neocortical pathology, the terminal arborizations of olfactory nerve appear hyperplastic and are associated with focal accumulations of A-4 (beta-amyloid) immunoreactivity that are not detectable by standard amyloid stains. These abnormalities may represent a pathologic manifestation of normally occurring plasticity in the olfactory system.
Struble
R G
RG
Department of Psychiatry, Memorial Medical Center Southern Illinois School of Medicine, Springfield 62794.
Clark
H B
HB
D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology*; D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D001369:Axons / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D016874:Neurofibrillary Tangles / Q000473:pathology; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000473:pathology*; D009832:Olfactory Nerve / Q000473:pathology; D016612:Paraffin Embedding
D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides