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McKenna MC, Corcia P, Couratier P, Siah WF, Pradat PF, Bede P. Frontotemporal Pathology in Motor Neuron Disease Phenotypes: Insights From Neuroimaging. Front Neurol 2021; 12:723450. [PMID: 34484106 PMCID: PMC8415268 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.723450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Frontotemporal involvement has been extensively investigated in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) but remains relatively poorly characterized in other motor neuron disease (MND) phenotypes such as primary lateral sclerosis (PLS), progressive muscular atrophy (PMA), spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), spinal bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA), post poliomyelitis syndrome (PPS), and hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP). This review focuses on insights from structural, metabolic, and functional neuroimaging studies that have advanced our understanding of extra-motor disease burden in these phenotypes. The imaging literature is limited in the majority of these conditions and frontotemporal involvement has been primarily evaluated by neuropsychology and post mortem studies. Existing imaging studies reveal that frontotemporal degeneration can be readily detected in ALS and PLS, varying degree of frontotemporal pathology may be captured in PMA, SBMA, and HSP, SMA exhibits cerebral involvement without regional predilection, and there is limited evidence for cerebral changes in PPS. Our review confirms the heterogeneity extra-motor pathology across the spectrum of MNDs and highlights the role of neuroimaging in characterizing anatomical patterns of disease burden in vivo. Despite the contribution of neuroimaging to MND research, sample size limitations, inclusion bias, attrition rates in longitudinal studies, and methodological constraints need to be carefully considered. Frontotemporal involvement is a quintessential clinical facet of MND which has important implications for screening practices, individualized management strategies, participation in clinical trials, caregiver burden, and resource allocation. The academic relevance of imaging frontotemporal pathology in MND spans from the identification of genetic variants, through the ascertainment of presymptomatic changes to the design of future epidemiology studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary Clare McKenna
- Computational Neuroimaging Group, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Philippe Corcia
- Department of Neurology-Neurophysiology, CRMR ALS, Tours, France.,UMR 1253 iBrain, University of Tours, Tours, France.,LITORALS, Federation of ALS Centres: Tours-Limoges, Limoges, France
| | - Philippe Couratier
- LITORALS, Federation of ALS Centres: Tours-Limoges, Limoges, France.,ALS Centre, Limoges University Hospital (CHU de Limoges), Limoges, France
| | - We Fong Siah
- Computational Neuroimaging Group, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | | | - Peter Bede
- Computational Neuroimaging Group, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.,Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
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2
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Navas-Sánchez FJ, Fernández-Pena A, Martín de Blas D, Alemán-Gómez Y, Marcos-Vidal L, Guzmán-de-Villoria JA, Fernández-García P, Romero J, Catalina I, Lillo L, Muñoz-Blanco JL, Ordoñez-Ugalde A, Quintáns B, Pardo J, Sobrido MJ, Carmona S, Grandas F, Desco M. Thalamic atrophy in patients with pure hereditary spastic paraplegia type 4. J Neurol 2021; 268:2429-2440. [PMID: 33507371 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-020-10387-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2020] [Revised: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 12/23/2020] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
SPG4 is an autosomal dominant pure form of hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) caused by mutations in the SPAST gene. HSP is considered an upper motor neuron disorder characterized by progressive spasticity and weakness of the lower limbs caused by degeneration of the corticospinal tract. In other neurodegenerative motor disorders, the thalamus and basal ganglia are affected, with a considerable impact on disease progression. However, only a few works have studied these brain structures in HSP, mainly in complex forms of this disease. Our research aims to detect potential alterations in the volume and shape of the thalamus and various basal ganglia structures by comparing 12 patients with pure HSP and 18 healthy controls. We used two neuroimaging procedures: automated segmentation of the subcortical structures (thalamus, hippocampus, caudate nucleus, globus pallidus, and putamen) in native space and shape analysis of the structures. We found a significant reduction in thalamic volume bilaterally, as well as an inward deformation, mainly in the sensory-motor thalamic regions in patients with pure HSP and a mutation in SPG4. We also observed a significant negative correlation between the shape of the thalamus and clinical scores (the Spastic Paraplegia Rating Scale score and disease duration). Moreover, we found a 'Group × Age' interaction that was closely related to the severity of the disease. No differences in volume or in shape were found in the remaining subcortical structures studied. Our results suggest that changes in structure of the thalamus could be an imaging biomarker of disease progression in pHSP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco J Navas-Sánchez
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain. .,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain.
| | | | | | - Yasser Alemán-Gómez
- Department of Psychiatry, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, Prilly, Switzerland.,Department of Radiology, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV) and University of Lausanne (UNIL), Lausanne, Switzerland.,Medical Image Analysis Laboratory (MIAL), Centre D'Imagerie BioMédicale (CIBM), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Luís Marcos-Vidal
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain.,Medical Image Analysis Laboratory (MIAL), Centre D'Imagerie BioMédicale (CIBM), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Juan A Guzmán-de-Villoria
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain.,Servicio de Radiodiagnóstico, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | | | - Julia Romero
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.,Servicio de Radiodiagnóstico, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Irene Catalina
- Servicio de Neurología, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Laura Lillo
- Hospital Ruber Internacional, Servicio de Neurología, Madrid, Spain.,Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón, Servicio de Neurología Alcorcón, Madrid, Spain
| | - José L Muñoz-Blanco
- Servicio de Neurología, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Andrés Ordoñez-Ugalde
- Laboratorio Biomolecular, Cuenca, Ecuador.,Unidad de Genética y Molecular, Hospital de Especialidades José Carrasco Arteaga, Cuenca, Ecuador.,Neurogenetics Group, FPGMX-IDIS, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Beatriz Quintáns
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER-U711), Madrid, Spain.,Fundación Pública Galega de Medicina Xenómica, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Julio Pardo
- Departamento de Neurología, Hospital Clínico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - María-Jesús Sobrido
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.,Hospital Clínico Universitario de A Coruña, SERGAS, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Susanna Carmona
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisco Grandas
- Servicio de Neurología, Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel Desco
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain.,Departamento de Bioingeniería e Ingeniería Aeroespacial, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.,Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), Madrid, Spain
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3
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Zhao X, Qian Y, Cheng Y, Guo X, Yuan WE. One-pot construction of a twice-condensed pDNA polyplex system for peripheral nerve crush injury therapy. Biomater Sci 2018; 6:2059-2072. [PMID: 29932177 DOI: 10.1039/c8bm00356d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Non-viral vector gene delivery is generally limited by its potential toxicity problems, poor transfection abilities, serum stability, or relatively complex construction processes of modified polyplexes. Thus, we develop an efficient and stable polyplex system through convenient construction methods. Here, polyethyleneimine (PEI) 1.8 kDa and glutaraldehyde (GA) are used to construct a novel twice-condensed pDNA polyplex system using a one-pot construction method, including pH-responsive C[double bond, length as m-dash]N linkages by which different PEI molecules on one single polyplex can link with each other. In this system, smaller particle sizes, higher zeta potentials and better serum stabilities are achieved without PEGylation or other chemical modifications using lyophobic segments, but via pH-responsive linkages that ensure the escape of nucleic acids. This polyplex system is used to deliver the pDNA of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) whose half-life period in vivo is only around 30 minutes. Compared with polyplexes prepared using PEI 25 kDa, cells and rats treated with twice-condensed VEGF pDNA polyplexes express significantly more VEGF or myelin basic protein (MBP), and this new polyplex system showed fewer adverse effects in vitro and in vivo. In addition, revascularization and neurogenesis are also discovered in the rat sciatic nerve crush injury model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaotian Zhao
- Engineering Research Center of Cell & Therapeutic Antibody, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmacy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, No. 800 Dongchuan RD, Shanghai 200240, China.
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4
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Novel crystalloid oligodendrogliopathy in hereditary spastic paraplegia. Acta Neuropathol 2012; 124:583-91. [PMID: 22392442 DOI: 10.1007/s00401-012-0965-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2011] [Revised: 02/23/2012] [Accepted: 02/25/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) comprises a group of clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders associated with spastic paraparesis (pure HSP) with or without additional neurological symptoms (complicated HSP). Here we present a case of an adult-onset, apparently autosomal-dominant, complicated form of HSP. Onset of clinical symptoms was at the age 40 years and characterised by slowly progressive corticospinal tract dysfunction, dysarthria, disorientation, extrapyramidal symptoms, and bilateral ptosis. Cranial MRI revealed hyperintensities on T2-weighted sequences mostly in the posterior limb of the internal capsule. The proband deceased at the age of 64 years. As morphological substrate for the slowly progressive clinical symptoms, comprehensive neuropathological and ultrastructural evaluation revealed a novel oligodendrogliopathy with distinctive, partly ubiquitinated and p62 positive fibrillar inclusions evolving into crystalloid deposits, containing elements of the oligodendroglial cytoskeleton (α- and β-tubulin, TPPP/p25). In the central nervous system, accumulation of crystalloid structures has been related to histiocytes but not to glial cells. This study has implications for the understanding on how the human central nervous system reacts to protracted dysfunction and disruption of the oligodendroglial cytoskeleton, including development of crystalloid structures, which have not yet been reported in neurodegenerative diseases including HSP.
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5
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Hourani R, El-Hajj T, Barada WH, Hourani M, Yamout BI. MR imaging findings in autosomal recessive hereditary spastic paraplegia. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2009; 30:936-40. [PMID: 19193756 DOI: 10.3174/ajnr.a1483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) is a disorder characterized by degeneration of the corticospinal tracts and posterior column of the spinal cord. Previously described radiologic findings included nonspecific brain abnormalities such as brain atrophy and white matter lesions, as well as atrophy of the spinal cord. In our study, we aimed to better characterize brain and spine MR imaging findings in a series of patients with HSP. MATERIALS AND METHODS Nine patients from 4 different Lebanese families with the autosomal recessive form of HSP were included in the study. All patients underwent brain and whole-spine MR imaging. We assessed the presence of white matter abnormalities mainly along the corticospinal tracts, brain atrophy, thinning of the corpus callosum, and the presence of spinal cord atrophy or abnormal signal intensity. RESULTS Imaging revealed mild brain atrophy (44%), atrophy of the corpus callosum (55%), white matter lesions (67%), abnormal T2 high signal intensity in the posterior limb of the internal capsule (55%), and mild spinal cord atrophy (33%). CONCLUSIONS The MR imaging findings of HSP are nonspecific and variable; however, the most prominent features include atrophy of the corpus callosum, T2 signal intensity in the posterior limb of the internal capsule, and spinal cord atrophy.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Hourani
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon.
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6
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OTA M, SATO N, SAITOH Y, ENDO F, MURATA M, ASADA T. Diffusion Tensor Imaging in Familial Spastic Paraplegia with Mental Impairment and Thin Corpus Callosum. Magn Reson Med Sci 2008; 7:163-7. [DOI: 10.2463/mrms.7.163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
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7
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Kassubek J, Juengling FD, Baumgartner A, Unrath A, Ludolph AC, Sperfeld AD. Different regional brain volume loss in pure and complicated hereditary spastic paraparesis: a voxel-based morphometric study. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007; 8:328-36. [PMID: 17852008 DOI: 10.1080/17482960701500718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain was analyzed using optimized voxel-based morphometry in 21 patients with pure hereditary spastic paraparesis (pHSP) and 12 patients with complicated HSP (cHSP). PHSP patients showed only small regional grey matter volume reduction, whereas significantly decreased grey matter volumes were localized pericentrally in cHSP. In the white matter, several small areas of regional volume reduction were observed in the pHSP patients, whereas the cHSP group exhibited large robust volume reduction involving the entire corpus callosum, a result that was reproduced by an additional region-based MRI analysis. It could be demonstrated that the topography of cerebral volume changes differed markedly in pHSP or cHSP at group level. Corpus callosum thinning seems to be a general feature of cHSP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Kassubek
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Germany.
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8
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Uttner I, Baumgartner A, Sperfeld AD, Kassubek J. Cognitive performance in pure and complicated hereditary spastic paraparesis: a neuropsychological and neuroimaging study. Neurosci Lett 2007; 419:158-61. [PMID: 17485167 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2007.04.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2007] [Revised: 03/31/2007] [Accepted: 04/16/2007] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The heterogeneous group of hereditary spastic paraparesis (HSP) is characterized by spastic paraparesis and was classified clinically into pure (pHSP) and complicated (cHSP) subtypes. Whereas cHSP is often associated with cognitive impairment, little is known about the cognitive performance in pHSP. Using a case-control study design, a cohort of 20 pHSP and 9 cHSP patients was assessed neuropsychologically. In the evaluation of working and episodic memory, attention, and executive functions, the cHSP patients showed highly significantly reduced scores in all cognitive domains tested here, whereas no pathological results were observed in the pHSP group. An additional correlation analysis between a 3D magnetic resonance imaging-based calculation of the global brain atrophy and the test performance revealed a strong association for the total HSP group but only weak correlations for the two HSP subtypes. This systematic assessment illustrated the different clinical character of cHSP and pHSP with respect to the cognitive profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingo Uttner
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
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9
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Ince PG, Wharton SB. Chapter 5 Cytopathology of the motor neuron. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2007; 82:89-119. [PMID: 18808890 DOI: 10.1016/s0072-9752(07)80008-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
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10
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Kassubek J, Sperfeld AD, Baumgartner A, Huppertz HJ, Riecker A, Juengling FD. Brain atrophy in pure and complicated hereditary spastic paraparesis: a quantitative 3D MRI study. Eur J Neurol 2006; 13:880-6. [PMID: 16879300 DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-1331.2006.01380.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Hereditary spastic paraparesis (HSP) is a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative disorders with progressive lower limb spasticity, categorized into pure (p-HSP) and complicated forms (c-HSP). The purpose of this study was to evaluate if brain volumes in HSP were altered compared with a control population. Brain volumes were determined in patients suffering from HSP, including both p-HSP (n = 21) and c-HSP type (n = 12), and 30 age-matched healthy controls, using brain parenchymal fractions (BPF) calculated from 3D MRI data in an observer-independent procedure. In addition, the tissue segments of grey and white matter were analysed separately. In HSP patients, BPF were significantly reduced compared with controls both for the whole patient group (P < 0.001) and for both subgroups, indicating considerable brain atrophy. In contrast to controls who showed a decline of brain volumes with age, this physiological phenomenon was less pronounced in HSP. Therefore, global brain parenchyma reduction, involving both grey and white matter, seems to be a feature in both subtypes of HSP. Atrophy was more pronounced in c-HSP, consistent with the more severe phenotype including extramotor involvement. Thus, global brain atrophy, detected by MRI-based brain volume quantification, is a biological marker in HSP subtypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Kassubek
- Department of Neurology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
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11
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Kuru S, Sakai M, Konagaya M, Yoshida M, Hashizume Y. Autopsy case of hereditary spastic paraplegia with thin corpus callosum showing severe gliosis in the cerebral white matter. Neuropathology 2006; 25:346-52. [PMID: 16382784 DOI: 10.1111/j.1440-1789.2005.00620.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
We report an autopsy case of a 51-year-old man clinically diagnosed with a complicated type of hereditary spastic paraplegia. His sister showed similar manifestations. Gait disturbance was manifested at 14 years of age. Subsequently, slowly progressive spastic tetraplegia developed with mental deterioration, neuropathy and amyotrophy. Marked cerebral atrophy with thin corpus callosum was shown by cranial MRI. Autopsy revealed a severely atrophic brain with extreme thinning of the whole corpus callosum. Microscopically, neurodegeneration was found in the corticospinal tract, thalamus, cerebral white matter and substantia nigra, as well as in the anterior horn and posterior column of the spinal cord. The remaining neurons contained large amounts of lipofuscin and eosinophilic granules. Unique to this patient was the severe gliosis in the cerebral white matter and substantia nigra, suggesting that sufficient development had been established when the degenerative process occurred. The predominant feature of the present case is the neurodegeneration process rather than hypoplasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoshi Kuru
- Department of Neurology, Suzuka National Hospital, Kasado, Suzuka-shi, Mie, Japan.
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12
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Deluca GC, Ebers GC, Esiri MM. The extent of axonal loss in the long tracts in hereditary spastic paraplegia. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 2005; 30:576-84. [PMID: 15540998 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2990.2004.00587.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 138] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) comprises a group of inherited neurodegenerative disorders with the shared characteristics of progressive weakness and spasticity predominantly affecting the lower limbs. Limited pathological accounts have described a 'dying back' axonal degeneration in this disease. However, the distribution and extent of axonal loss has not been elucidated in a quantitative way. We have studied post-mortem material from six HSP patients and 32 controls in detail. The population of axons was examined quantitatively in the corticospinal tracts from the medulla to the lumbar spinal cord and the sensory tracts from the lumbar to upper cervical spinal cord. Myelin and axon-stained sections were employed to estimate the notional area and axonal density, respectively, of both tracts. Our results indicate that in the corticospinal tracts there is a significant reduction in area and axonal density at all levels investigated in HSP compared to controls. In the corticospinal tracts, the ratio of medulla and lumbar total axonal number was significantly greater in HSP cases compared to controls suggesting more pronounced axonal loss in the distal neuraxis in HSP than in controls. The sensory tracts in HSP, in contrast, showed a significant reduction in area and axonal density only in the upper regions of the spinal cord. Similar to the corticospinal tracts, the ratio of lumbar and upper cervical cord total axonal number in the sensory tracts was increased in HSP cases compared to controls. These findings are consistent with a length-dependent 'dying back' axonopathy. Nerve fibre loss was not size-selective with both small and large diameter fibres affected. In HSP, axonal loss is widespread and symmetrical and its extent tract-specific. The characterization of the nature of axonal loss in HSP, where this is a primary phenomenon, may help the interpretation of axonal loss in conditions such as multiple sclerosis where the sequence of events is less clear.
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Affiliation(s)
- G C Deluca
- Departments of Clinical Neurology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
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13
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Maekawa S, Al-Sarraj S, Kibble M, Landau S, Parnavelas J, Cotter D, Everall I, Leigh PN. Cortical selective vulnerability in motor neuron disease: a morphometric study. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2004; 127:1237-51. [PMID: 15130949 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awh132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 117] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Neuroimaging and neuropsychological studies have revealed that the primary motor cortex (PMC) and the extramotor cortical areas are functionally abnormal in motor neuron disease (MND, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), but the nature of the cortical lesions that underlie these changes is poorly understood. In particular, there have been few attempts to quantify neuronal loss in the PMC and in other cortical areas in MND. We used SMI-32, an antibody against an epitope on non-phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain, to analyse the size and density of SMI-32-positive cortical pyramidal neurons in layer V of the PMC, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the supragenual anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) in 13 MND and eight control subjects. There was a statistically significant reduction in the density of SMI-32-immunoreactive (IR) pyramidal neurons within cortical layer V in the PMC, the DLPFC and the ACC in MND subjects compared with controls [t (19) = 2.91, P = 0.009; estimated reduction 25%; 95% CI = 8%, 40%]. In addition, we studied the density and size of interneurons immunoreactive for the calcium-binding proteins calbindin-D(28K) (CB), parvalbumin (PV) and calretinin (CR) in the same areas (PMC, DLPFC and ACC). Statistically significant differences in the densities of CB-IR neurons were observed within cortical layers V (P = 0.003) and VI (P = 0.001) in MND cases compared with controls. The densities of CR- and PV-IR neurons were not significantly different between MND and control cases, although there were trends towards reductions of CR-IR neuronal density within the same layers and of PV-IR neuronal density within cortical layer VI. Loss of pyramidal neurons and of GABAergic interneurons is more widespread than has been appreciated and is present in areas associated with neuroimaging and cognitive abnormalities in MND. These findings support the notion that MND should be considered a multisystem disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Maekawa
- Department of Neurology, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, London SE5 8AF, UK.
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14
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Wharton SB, McDermott CJ, Grierson AJ, Wood JD, Gelsthorpe C, Ince PG, Shaw PJ. The cellular and molecular pathology of the motor system in hereditary spastic paraparesis due to mutation of the spastin gene. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2004; 62:1166-77. [PMID: 14656074 DOI: 10.1093/jnen/62.11.1166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Hereditary spastic paraparesis (HSP) is a genetically heterogeneous disorder, the most common cause of which is mutation of the spastin gene. Recent evidence suggests a role for spastin in microtubule dynamics, but the distribution of the protein within the CNS is unknown. The core neuropathology of HSP is distal degeneration of the lateral corticospinal tract and of fasciculus gracilis, but there are few neuropathological studies of cases with a defined mutation. We aimed to determine the distribution of spastin expression in the human CNS and to investigate the cellular pathology of the motor system in HSP due to mutation of the spastin gene. Using an antibody to spastin, we have carried out immunohistochemistry on postmortem brain. We have demonstrated that spastin is a neuronal protein. It is widely expressed in the CNS so that the selectivity of the degeneration in HSP is not due to the normal cellular distribution of the protein. We have identified mutation of the spastin gene in 3 autopsy cases of HSP. Distal degeneration of long tracts in the spinal cord, consistent with a dying back axonopathy, was accompanied by a microglial reaction. The presence of novel hyaline inclusions in anterior horn cells and an alteration in immunostaining for cytoskeletal proteins and mitochondria indicates that long tract degeneration is accompanied by cytopathology in the motor system and may support a role for derangement of cytoskeletal function. All 3 cases also demonstrated evidence of tau pathology outside the motor system, suggesting that the neuropathology is not confined to the motor system in spastin-related HSP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen B Wharton
- Academic Unit of Pathology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom.
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15
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Chapter 2 Pathology of Motor Neuron Disorders. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2003. [DOI: 10.1016/s1877-3419(09)70103-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/24/2023]
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16
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Lloyd CM, Richardson MP, Brooks DJ, Al-Chalabi A, Leigh PN. Extramotor involvement in ALS: PET studies with the GABA(A) ligand [(11)C]flumazenil. Brain 2000; 123 ( Pt 11):2289-96. [PMID: 11050028 DOI: 10.1093/brain/123.11.2289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 129] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
We used the benzodiazepine GABA(A) marker [(11)C] flumazenil to study cerebral dysfunction in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with PET. Seventeen non-demented patients with clinically definite or probable ALS were scanned and statistical parametric maps were derived to localize changes in regional flumazenil volumes of distribution (FMZVD), which correlate closely with receptor density (B(max)), and the results were compared with those of 17 controls. The ALS group showed statistically significant decreases in relative FMZVD in the prefrontal cortex (areas 9 and 10 bilaterally), parietal cortex (area 7 bilaterally), visual association cortex (area 18 bilaterally) and left motor/premotor cortex (including area 4) (P < 0.001). Relative reductions in FMZVD were also seen in the left ventrolateral and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (areas 45, 46 and 47), Broca's area and the right temporal (area 21) and right visual association cortex (area 19). These observations suggest that cerebral dysfunction in ALS involves motor/premotor and extramotor areas, particularly the prefrontal regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- C M Lloyd
- Department of Neurology, Guy's, King's and St Thomas' School of Medicine and the Institute of Psychiatry, Medical Research Council Cyclotron Unit, Hammersmith Hospital and Institute of Neurology, London, UK
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Bertini E, Sabatelli M, Di Capua M, Cilio MR, Mignogna T, Federico A, Tonali P. Familial spastic paraplegia, axonal sensory-motor polyneuropathy and bulbar amyotrophy with facial dysmorphia: new cases of Troyer-like syndrome. Eur J Paediatr Neurol 1998; 2:245-54. [PMID: 10726827 DOI: 10.1016/s1090-3798(98)80038-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
We studied two Libyan siblings, born to healthy consanguineous parents, who had suffered from a progressive neurological disorder, characterized by facial dysmorphia, ataxia, spastic paraplegia and an axonal sensory-motor polyneuropathy, since the age of 3 years. The clinical picture progressed slowly over a 6-year period to involve also bulbar and distal limb muscles. Interestingly, we found unusual tubulofilamentous inclusions in peripheral nerves and presynaptic buttons at the neuromuscular junctions. Describing the clinical picture of this presumably new disorder, we comment on the difference from similar conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Bertini
- Department of Paediatric Neurology, Bambino Gesu Hospital, Rome, Italy
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