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Does ageing have an effect on midbrain premotor nuclei for vertical eye movements?
Author(s) -
Henson Craig,
Staunton Hugh,
Brett Francesca M.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
movement disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.352
H-Index - 198
eISSN - 1531-8257
pISSN - 0885-3185
DOI - 10.1002/mds.10414
Subject(s) - medial longitudinal fasciculus , ageing , neuroscience , midbrain , gliosis , psychology , oculomotor nucleus , anatomy , medicine , central nervous system
Currently, there is debate in the clinical literature as to whether defects in vertical gaze are a consequence of normal ageing or a component of an underlying neurodegenerative disorder. Although pathological changes have been demonstrated in diseased subjects, no study to date has addressed the question of normal ageing effects. In this retrospective study, we examined 23 neurologically and pathologically normal subjects (age 18–91). Using an unbiased, frame‐based sampling method, we quantified neuronal and glial cell densities in 10 young (<50) and 13 aged (>65) subjects in the rostral interstitial nucleus of the medial longitudinal fasciculus (riMLF), the key premotor substrate in the vertical gaze pathway. We found no statistically significant difference in neuronal density, glial cell density, or neuron‐to‐glial cell ratios between the young and the aged. We conclude, therefore, that neuronal loss, neuronal atrophy, or gliosis in the riMLF are not consequences of normal ageing. © 2003 Movement Disorder Society