Biomaterial Database

Alzheimer's changes in non-demented and demented patients: a statistical approach to their relationships. 1995

D Langui, and A Probst, and J Ulrich

Institute of Pathology, University of Basel, Switzerland.

The anterior hippocampus and the entorhinal cortex of 167 non-demented individuals (controls) and 22 patients with Alzheimer's dementia were investigated. Senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles were counted on paraffin sections stained with methenamin silver and Gallyas silver iodide, respectively. The results showed that both senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles areal densities (lesions per mm2) correlated significantly with age in the control collective. No significant correlation between Alzheimer's disease lesions and age was found in patients with Alzheimer's dementia. Positive and significant correlation between senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles was found in the control group but not in the Alzheimer group. Control individuals (n = 43, matched for age with the Alzheimer group) displayed both plaques and tangles. In this subgroup neither plaques nor tangles correlation with age; however, there was a significant correlation between senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. We hypothesize that the continuous activity of underlying processes associated with senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles formation or resolution might lead to the unbalanced production of these lesions in Alzheimer's disease.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D008875	Middle Aged	An adult aged 45 - 64 years.	Middle Age
D009410	Nerve Degeneration	Loss of functional activity and trophic degeneration of nerve axons and their terminal arborizations following the destruction of their cells of origin or interruption of their continuity with these cells. The pathology is characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases. Often the process of nerve degeneration is studied in research on neuroanatomical localization and correlation of the neurophysiology of neural pathways.	Neuron Degeneration,Degeneration, Nerve,Degeneration, Neuron,Degenerations, Nerve,Degenerations, Neuron,Nerve Degenerations,Neuron Degenerations
D003937	Diagnosis, Differential	Determination of which one of two or more diseases or conditions a patient is suffering from by systematically comparing and contrasting results of diagnostic measures.	Diagnoses, Differential,Differential Diagnoses,Differential Diagnosis
D005260	Female		Females
D006624	Hippocampus	A curved elevation of GRAY MATTER extending the entire length of the floor of the TEMPORAL HORN of the LATERAL VENTRICLE (see also TEMPORAL LOBE). The hippocampus proper, subiculum, and DENTATE GYRUS constitute the hippocampal formation. Sometimes authors include the ENTORHINAL CORTEX in the hippocampal formation.	Ammon Horn,Cornu Ammonis,Hippocampal Formation,Subiculum,Ammon's Horn,Hippocampus Proper,Ammons Horn,Formation, Hippocampal,Formations, Hippocampal,Hippocampal Formations,Hippocampus Propers,Horn, Ammon,Horn, Ammon's,Proper, Hippocampus,Propers, Hippocampus,Subiculums
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000328	Adult	A person having attained full growth or maturity. Adults are of 19 through 44 years of age. For a person between 19 and 24 years of age, YOUNG ADULT is available.	Adults
D000367	Age Factors	Age as a constituent element or influence contributing to the production of a result. It may be applicable to the cause or the effect of a circumstance. It is used with human or animal concepts but should be differentiated from AGING, a physiological process, and TIME FACTORS which refers only to the passage of time.	Age Reporting,Age Factor,Factor, Age,Factors, Age
D000368	Aged	A person 65 years of age or older. For a person older than 79 years, AGED, 80 AND OVER is available.	Elderly