title: Amyloid plaques in cerebellar cortex and the integrity of Purkinje cell dendrites.
abstract: We probed serial and near serial sections of cerebellum from 13 Alzheimer's disease (AD), 10 older Down's syndrome (DS) patients, and 9 age-matched, non-AD controls, using single and double labeling immunohistochemistry to investigate the pathologic consequences of beta-amyloid or A4 (A beta) deposits in cerebellum and their relationship to Purkinje cells (PCs). Our data showed that A beta deposits in cerebellum of AD and older DS adults only form diffuse or preamyloid plaques and the density of A beta lesions per unit area of molecular layer correlated with the number of PCs per unit length of the subjacent PC layer in double immunostained sections (r = 0.85; p < 0.001). About 65% of these cerebellar A beta deposits were in physical contact with PC dendrites. No A beta plaques were found in the cerebellum of controls. Despite the abundance of A beta deposits in the cerebellar cortex of AD and older DS patients, neither PC bodies nor PC dendrites in physical contact with A beta lesions showed evidence of structural abnormalities.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Philadelphia Geriatric Center, PA 19141.
authors.forename: Y T
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Woodruff-Pak
authors.forename: J Q
authors.initials: JQ
authors.lastname: Trojanowski
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology; D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002525:Cerebellar Cortex / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D003712:Dendrites / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D011689:Purkinje Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D013569:Synapses / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins