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Immunohistochemical study of the expression of cytokines and nitric oxide synthases in brains of patients with dementia with Lewy bodies
Author(s) -
Katsuse Omi,
Iseki Eizo,
Kosaka Kenji
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
neuropathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.701
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1440-1789
pISSN - 0919-6544
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1789.2003.00483.x
Subject(s) - dementia with lewy bodies , nitric oxide synthase , nitric oxide , pathology , microglia , hippocampus , entorhinal cortex , senile plaques , proinflammatory cytokine , amygdala , lewy body , alzheimer's disease , medicine , neuroscience , dementia , biology , immunology , inflammation , disease
Regional expression of cytokines (IL‐1α, TNF‐α), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and neuronal NOS (nNOS) was immunohistochemically investigated in the brains of patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), compared with those of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and non‐demented elderly persons. It has been reported that inflammatory responses by cytokines and oxygen free radicals such as nitric oxide (NO) are associated with damaged neurons, degenerative neurites or amyloid deposits in AD brains. In the present study, overexpression of IL‐1α, TNF‐α and iNOS was demonstrated in the amygdala, hippocampus, entorhinal and insular cortices of DLB brains, which are pathologically the most vulnerable regions in DLB brains as well as AD brains. In addition, some Lewy body (LB)‐bearing neurons were involved by the processes of IL‐1α‐ and TNF‐α‐positive microglia, and most extracellular LB were associated with the processes of TNF‐α‐ and iNOS‐positive astroglia. Glial involvement was also found around neuritic plaques and extracellular neurofibrillary tangles. In contrast, the expression of nNOS was reduced in the amygdala of DLB brains showing severe Lewy pathology. These findings suggest that cytokines and NO are significantly implicated in neuronal damage and death including LB formation in DLB brains.