title: Neocortical Neuronal Loss in Patients with Multiple System Atrophy: A Stereological Study.
abstract: To determine the extent of neocortical involvement in multiple system atrophy (MSA), we used design-based stereological methods to estimate the total numbers of neurons, oligodendrocytes, astrocytes, and microglia in the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital cortex of brains from 11 patients with MSA and 11 age- and gender-matched control subjects. The stereological data were supported by cell marker expression analyses in tissue samples from the prefrontal cortex. We found significantly fewer neurons in the frontal and parietal cortex of MSA brains compared with control brains. Significantly more astrocytes and microglia were observed in the frontal, parietal, and temporal cortex of MSA brains, whereas no change in the total number of oligodendrocytes was seen in any of the neocortical regions. There were significantly fewer neurons in the frontal cortex of MSA patients with impaired executive function than in patients with normal executive function. Our results indicate that the involvement of the neocortex in MSA is far more widespread and substantial than previously thought. In addition, our results suggest that the increasingly recognized cognitive impairment in MSA may be related to neuronal loss in the frontal cortex.
authors.affiliation: Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience.|Bispebjerg Movement Disorders Biobank.|Department of Neurology, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Lisette
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Salvesen
authors.affiliation: Bispebjerg Movement Disorders Biobank.|Department of Neurology, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Kristian
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Winge
authors.affiliation: Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Brudek
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Rigshospitalet University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Tina Klitmøller
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Agander
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Bispebjerg University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Annemette
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Løkkegaard
authors.affiliation: Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience.
authors.forename: Bente
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pakkenberg
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019578:Multiple System Atrophy / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D019579:Neocortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*
keywords: glial cells; multiple system atrophy; neocortex; neurons; stereology