title: A post-mortem stereological study of striatal cell number in human obesity.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Neuroimaging studies have revealed abnormalities in brain structure, including the striatum, in obese people. In this study, the cellular and parenchymal basis for these findings in post-mortem brain tissue was investigated.
  
  
  METHODS
  Design-based (unbiased) stereology combined with histochemical and immunocytochemical staining was used to quantify total number of neurons and astrocytes in post-mortem striatal brain samples from nine obese (BMI 40.2 ± 6.1 kg/m(2) ) and eight lean (BMI 24.4 ± 1.0 kg/m(2) ) donors. Total numbers of Nissl-stained neurons and glial fibrillary acidic protein-immunopositive astrocytes were counted in 10 systematic-random sections starting from the frontal pole of the striatum.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no differences in mean total numbers of neurons (obese: 7.60 E+06; SD 2.50 E+06; lean: 7.85 E+06; SD 8.26 E+05; P < 0.78) or astrocytes (obese: 7.42 E+06; SD 2.27 E+06; lean: 7.43 E+06; SD 2.50 E+06; P < 0.99). A higher variance was found for number of neurons (P < 0.007) but not astrocytes (P < 0.72) in the obese group. Neuron/glia ratios were similar in both groups (obese: 1.07, SD 0.39; lean: 1.15, SD 0.37; P < 0.70) with an overall striatal neuron/glia ratio of 1.11 (SD 0.37) across the entire study population (n = 17).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  No difference was found in the average numbers of neurons and astrocytes in the anterior striatum between lean and obese people. The morphological basis for structural brain changes in obesity requires further investigation.
authors.affiliation: Obesity and Diabetes Clinical Research Section, NIDDK-NIH, DHHS, Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Christopher M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Weise
authors.forename: Peter R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Mouton
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Eschbacher
authors.forename: Stephen W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Coons
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Krakoff
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D001344:Autopsy / Q000379:methods; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D002452:Cell Count; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005260:Female; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D013851:Thinness / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein