title: Preservation of neurons of the nucleus basalis in subcortical ischemic vascular disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate loss of neurons in the nucleus basalis (NB) of Meynert in patients with subcortical ischemic vascular disease (SIVD) compared with healthy controls, patients with Alzheimer disease (AD), and patients with mixed AD and SIVD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Autopsied cases drawn from a longitudinal observational study of patients with SIVD, patients with AD, and healthy controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multi center, university-affiliated, program project neuropathology core.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with pathologically defined SIVD (n = 16), AD (n = 20), and mixed AD and SIVD (n = 10) and healthy controls matched by age and educational level (n = 17) were studied.
  
  
  METHODS
  The NB neuronal cell counts in each group and their correlation with the extent of magnetic resonance imaging white matter lesions and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) scores closest to death.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No significant loss of neurons was found in SIVD patients compared with age-matched controls in contrast to the AD and mixed groups, who had significant neuronal loss. A significant inverse correlation between NB neurons and CDR scores was found in the AD group but not in the SIVD and mixed groups. The NB cell counts were not correlated with either the extent of white matter lesions or cortical gray matter volume in the SIVD or AD groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings inveigh against primary loss of cholinergic neurons in SIVD patients but do not rule out the possibility of secondary cholinergic deficits due to disruptions of cholinergic projections to cerebral cortex.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: San
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zarow
authors.forename: Wendy J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Mack
authors.forename: Ling
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Harry V
authors.initials: HV
authors.lastname: Vinters
authors.forename: William G
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Ellis
authors.forename: Scott A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Lyness
authors.forename: Helena C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chui
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001344:Autopsy; D020532:Basal Nucleus of Meynert / Q000473:pathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002452:Cell Count; D002561:Cerebrovascular Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009474:Neurons / Q000473:pathology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests