title: Neuropathology of primary restless leg syndrome: absence of specific tau- and alpha-synuclein pathology.
abstract: The neuroanatomical substrate for restless legs syndrome (RLS) is unknown. We identified 4 patients with idiopathic RLS who came to post-mortem examination, where brain and spinal cord tissue were available for neuropathological assessment. Lewy bodies were not identified and alpha-synuclein immunohistochemistry was uniformly negative. Neurofibrillary tangle pathology was variable and nonspecific. These findings suggest that tau- or alpha-synuclein brain pathology is not a component of primary RLS. Although chronic ischemic changes were found in all 4 cases, these were probably incidental. The absence of diagnostic microscopic brain or spinal cord pathology suggests that the pathologic substrate may be neurochemical or receptor based.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.
authors.forename: Sean J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Pittock
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Parrett
authors.forename: Charles H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Adler
authors.forename: Joseph E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Parisi
authors.forename: Dennis W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Dickson
authors.forename: J Eric
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Ahlskog
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D016874:Neurofibrillary Tangles / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D012148:Restless Legs Syndrome / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D051843:Synucleins; D051844:alpha-Synuclein; D016875:tau Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C497604:SNCA protein, human; D051843:Synucleins; D051844:alpha-Synuclein; D016875:tau Proteins