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A Multivariate Approach to the Relationship between Aging, RNA Depletion and the Incidence of Plaques and Tangles
Author(s) -
Dani Sergio U.,
Bergmann Britta,
Walter Gerhard F.,
Pittella José Eymard H.,
Hori Akira
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
neuropathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.701
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1440-1789
pISSN - 0919-6544
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1789.1993.tb00203.x
Subject(s) - rna , multivariate analysis of variance , incidence (geometry) , senile plaques , multivariate analysis , biology , analysis of variance , neurofibrillary tangle , pathology , disease , alzheimer's disease , medicine , biochemistry , gene , physics , machine learning , computer science , optics
In order to study the relationship between changes in total cytoplasmic RNA and the incidence of neuritic plaques (NP) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) in the aging human brain, a series of parahippocampal gyri (PHG) was obtained, post mortem, from 50 aging, mostly non‐Alzheimer disease human brains, grouped in five decades of life. Absolute and relative NP and NFT counts in silver stained preparations were performed with the aid of a semi‐automated image analysis system, and total cytoplasmic RNA was estimated in azure b (ab) preparations. Progressive ab‐RNA depletion corresponded to the decades of life in which the incidences of NP and NFT increased significantly. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) indicated not only isolated effects of increasing age and decreasing mean ab‐RNA, upon the incidence of NP, but also interactive effects of the two former parameters. In addition, highly significant isolated and interactive effects of age and mean ab‐RNA decrease were also observed upon the incidence of NFT. It is put forward that the rate at which total neuronal cytoplasmic RNA (mainly rRNA species) is reduced may play an important part in the pathophysiology of the neuronal degeneration as marked histologically by the onset of NP and NFT.