title: Thalamic damage in periventricular leukomalacia: novel pathologic observations relevant to cognitive deficits in survivors of prematurity.
abstract: Despite major advances in the long-term survival of premature infants, cognitive deficits occur in 30-50% of very preterm (<32 gestational weeks) survivors. Impaired working memory and attention despite average global intelligence are central to the academic difficulties of the survivors. Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), characterized by periventricular necrosis and diffuse gliosis in the cerebral white matter, is the major brain pathology in preterm infants. We tested the novel hypothesis that pathology in thalamic nuclei critical for working memory and attention, i.e. mediodorsal nucleus and reticular nucleus, respectively, occurs in PVL. In 22 PVL cases (gestational age 32.5 +/- 4.8 wk) and 16 non-PVL controls (36.7 +/- 5.2 wk) who died within infancy, the incidence of thalamic pathology was significantly higher in PVL cases (59%; 13/22) compared with controls (19%; 3/16) (p = 0.01), with substantial involvement of the mediodorsal, and reticular nuclei in PVL. The prevention of thalamic damage may be required for the eradication of defects in survivors with PVL.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Poonam
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ligam
authors.forename: Robin L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Haynes
authors.forename: Rebecca D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Folkerth
authors.forename: Lena
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: May
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Joseph J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Volpe
authors.forename: Hannah C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Kinney
mesh_terms: D001253:Astrocytes / Q000473:pathology; D001288:Attention; D001344:Autopsy; D001369:Axons / Q000473:pathology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007969:Leukomalacia, Periventricular / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000032:analysis; D020645:Mediodorsal Thalamic Nucleus / Q000473:pathology; D008568:Memory; D009336:Necrosis; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D013787:Thalamic Nuclei / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D008315:Malondialdehyde