1/4. KP1 expression of ghost Pick bodies, amyloid P-positive astrocytes and selective nigral degeneration in early onset Picks disease.We present a patient with early-onset Pick's disease in which selective nigral degeneration, KP1 expression of ghost Pick bodies and amyloid P-positive astrocytes were found. We also review the literature on early-onset Pick's disease. A 34-year-old man showed personality change including stereotypical behavior. muscle rigidity and spasticity developed later, and he died twelve years after the onset of his illness. The brain showed lobar cerebral atrophy prominent in the temporal lobe, and to a lesser degree in the prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortex. The substantia nigra displayed profound degeneration whereas the head of the caudate nucleus and the putamen were not so seriously affected because the neurons were preserved and only slight astrocytic proliferation was seen. Many Pick bodies were found in the hippocampal formation, and ballooned neurons (Pick cells) were dispersed throughout the cerebral cortex, subcortical grey matter and hippocampal formation. The affected white matter exhibited severe fibrillary gliosis, and numerous astrocytes positive for glial fibrillary acidic protein and microglial cells positive for CR3/43 were found in the atrophied cortical lesions. The intraneuronal Pick bodies expressed ubiquitin, neurofilament and tau, and KP1 distinctly stained ghost Pick bodies. Tau-positive astrocytes were found in the striatum, hippocampal formation, pontine tegmentum, substantia nigra and affected frontotemporal cortices. These astrocytes were also positive for amyloid P. Extensive search of the literature on early-onset Pick's disease disclosed only a few cases with selective nigral degeneration, and we failed to find any differences in duration, progression of the illness and the extent of subcortical gray matter involvement between cases of early-onset and presenile onset of Pick' s disease. We conclude that the striatopallidal and nigral system can be affected independently in Pick's disease and report new immunohistochemical findings.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = nigra (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/4. frontal lobe dementia with novel tauopathy: sporadic multiple system tauopathy with dementia.We present a novel tauopathy in a patient with a 10-yr history of progressive frontal lobe dementia and a negative family history. autopsy revealed mild atrophy of frontal and parietal lobes and severe atrophy of the temporal lobes. There were occasional filamentous tau-positive inclusions, but more interesting were numerous distinctive globular neuronal and glial tau-positive inclusions in both gray and white matter of the neocortex. Affected subcortical regions included substantia nigra, globus pallidus, subthalamic nucleus, and cerebellar dentate nucleus, in a distribution similar to progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), but without significant accompanying neuronal loss or gliosis. Predominantly straight filaments were detected by electron microscopy (EM), while other inclusions were similar to fingerprint bodies. No twisted ribbons were detected. Immuno-EM studies revealed that only the filamentous inclusions were composed of tau. immunoblotting of sarkosyl-insoluble tau revealed 2 major bands of 64 and 68 kDa. Blotting analysis after dephosphorylation revealed predominantly 4-repeat tau. sequence analysis of tau revealed that there were no mutations in either exons 9-13 or the adjacent intronic sequences. The unique cortical tau pathology in this case of sporadic multiple system tauopathy with dementia adds a new pathologic profile to the spectrum of tauopathies.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.11111111111111keywords = nigra (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/4. Argyrophilic grain disease mimicking temporal Pick's disease: a clinical, radiological, and pathological study of an autopsy case with a clinical course of 15 years.This report concerns an autopsy case of argyrophilic grain disease (AGD) mimicking temporal Pick's disease. The patient was a Japanese woman without hereditary burden who was 89 years old at the time of death. She developed memory impairment and began wandering at the age of 74, followed by prominent character changes about 6 years after disease onset. A neurological examination 5 months before her death revealed poor rapport, unconcern, severe dementia, and double incontinence, without aphasia or muscle rigidity. Serial neuroradiological examination revealed progressive enlargement of the bilateral inferior horns of the lateral ventricle, reflecting progressive atrophy of the medial temporal lobes. Macroscopically, neuropathological examination showed circumscribed atrophy of the bilateral amygdalae, hippocampi, parahippocampal gyri, and lateral occipitotemporal gyri. Histologically, there was neuronal loss in the areas mentioned above, the caudate nucleus, putamen, thalamus, substantia nigra, and locus ceruleus, with ballooned neurons in the cerebral cortex and amygdala. Numerous argyrophilic grains with coiled bodies were present not only in the limbic system, but also in the affected cerebrum. Rare neurofibrillary changes were present in the limbic areas, consistent with Braak stage II, with no senile plaques. Based on these findings and a review of the literature, we note that AGD is clinicopathologically similar not only to mesolimbocortical dementia, but also to atypical senile dementia of Alzheimer type. This report may contribute to the elucidation of the clinicopathological hallmarks of AGD.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.11111111111111keywords = nigra (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/4. Pick's disease with Pick bodies combined with progressive supranuclear palsy without tuft-shaped astrocytes: a clinical, neuroradiologic and pathological study of an autopsied case.We report clinical, neuroradiologic features, and neuropathologic findings of a 76-year-old man with coexistent Pick's disease and progressive supranuclear palsy. The patient presented with loss of recent memory, abnormal behavior and change in personality at the age of 60. The symptoms were progressive. Three years later, repetitive or compulsive behavior became prominent. About 9 years after onset, he had difficulty moving and became bedridden because of a fracture of his left leg. His condition gradually deteriorated and he developed mutism and became vegetative. The patient died from pneumonia 16 years after the onset of symptoms. Serial MRI scans showed progressive cortex atrophy, especially in the bilateral frontal and temporal lobes. Macroscopic inspection showed severe atrophy of the whole brain, including cerebrum, brainstem and cerebellum. Microscopic observations showed extensive superficial spongiosis and severe neuronal loss with gliosis in the second and third cortical layers in the frontal, temporal and parietal cortex. There were Pick cells and argyrophilic Pick bodies, which were tau- and ubiquitin-positive in neurons of layers II-III of the above-mentioned cortex. Numerous argyrophilic Pick bodies were observed in the hippocampus, especially in the dentate fascia. In addition, moderate to severe loss of neurons was found with gliosis and a lot of Gallyas/tau-positive globus neurofibrillary tangles in the caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, thalamus, substantia nigra, locus coeruleus and dentate nucleus. Numerous thorned-astrocytes and coiled bodies but no-tuft shaped astrocytes were noted in the basal ganglion, brainstem and cerebellar white matter. In conclusion, these histopathological features were compatible with classical Pick's disease and coexistence with progressive supranuclear palsy without tuft-shaped astrocytes.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.11111111111111keywords = nigra (Clic here for more details about this article) |