Pathways and patterns of cell loss in verified Alzheimer's disease: a factor and cluster analysis of clinico-pathological subgroups.
Thirty-seven patients with neuropathologically verified Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been studied prospectively. A principal components analysis of neuron numbers in cortical and subcortical areas revealed two variables: Variable I with high loadings for the hippocampo-parahippocampo-parietal neuron counts and Variable II with high loadings for coeruleo-frontal cell numbers. Both may reflect functional neuroanatomical connections which may act as pathways of neurodegeneration in AD. A cluster analysis based on these neuron numbers yielded three groups of patients: Cluster A with low hippocampo-parahippocampo-parietal cell counts, Cluster B with well-preserved neuron numbers, and Cluster C with low coeruleo-frontal neuron numbers. Differences in clinical features between these patient groups indicated the potential clinical relevance of these clusters.
Section of Old Age Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
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H
Förstl
Section of Old Age Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
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R
Levy
Section of Old Age Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
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A
Burns
Department of Neuropathology, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
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P
Luthert
MRC Alzheimer's Disease Brain Bank, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK.
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N
Cairns
Alzheimer's disease; neurodegeneration; neuropathology; sub-groups