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Parallel enlargement of Marinesco bodies and nuclei and progressive deposition of p62 in pigmented neurons of the substantia nigra
Author(s) -
Amano Ryota,
Toru Shuta,
Yamane Michio,
Kitagawa Masanobu,
Hirokawa Katsuiku,
Uchihara Toshiki
Publication year - 2020
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/neup.12647
Subject(s) - substantia nigra , nucleoplasm , midbrain , nucleus , biology , red nucleus , neuroscience , microbiology and biotechnology , chemistry , anatomy , central nervous system , nucleolus , dopamine , dopaminergic
Marinesco bodies (MBs) are spherical nuclear inclusions found in pigmented neurons of the substantia nigra. Although MBs are abundant in senescent brains, how they are related to aging processes remains unclear. Here, we performed a morphometric analysis of midbrain pigmented neurons to identify the possible influence of MBs on nuclear size. The transected area of the nucleus (nuclear area) was larger in the presence of MBs and was correlated with the area of MB (MB area) in all tested brains. The MB‐associated nuclear enlargement was significant even after MB areas were subtracted from nuclear areas. Moreover, higher MB immunoreactivity of p62 was detected in the nucleoplasm of the enlarged MB‐associated nuclei. This study on human brains is the first quantitative approach demonstrating MB‐associated nuclear enlargement and progressive accumulation of small nucleoplasmic materials. Although cellular hypertrophy is usually considered to be an indication of the upregulation of cellular function, this might not always be the case. These findings suggest that an age‐related decline of ubiquitin‐proteasome and autophagy system activity and stagnation of undegradable materials are one of the candidate mechanisms to explain the age‐related decline of neural activity in the substantia nigra.