DiPatre P L, Gelman B B
Department of Pathology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston 77550, USA.
J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 1997 Feb;56(2):143-9. doi: 10.1097/00005072-199702000-00004.
Microglial cells are the main component of the brain's resident immune system and are activated in Alzheimer disease (AD). We quantified the density of activated microglial cells (AMG) in 8 sectors of human hippocampus to determine if their density is correlated with senile plaque (SP) and neurofibrillary tangle (NFT) formation. Ferritin-stained microglia, Bielschowsky-stained neuritic plaques, and perikarya containing NFTs were counted in 8 young adults, 9 nondemented elderly adults, and 9 demented patients with AD. Microglial cell activation was moderately higher in elderly nondemented subjects. In AD there was a more striking activation in all sectors of the hippocampus. Most AMGs were distributed diffusely in neuropil and were not delimited to SPs or NFTs. Senile plaque counts were not linked with AMG counts within any sector. Neurofibrillary tangle counts were correlated significantly with AMG counts within one sector, the subiculum. When variations within and between sectors were factored out statistically, the burden of AMGs was correlated significantly with the burden of NFTs (r = 0.34; p < 0.005), but not SPs. Neuropathologic changes at the origin of the perforant pathway were correlated significantly with orthograde microglial cell activation in the termination field. These observations show that correlations between microglial cell activation and pathologic features of AD are only rarely significant. When significant linkage was present, it involved NFTs and not SPs, and depended on which sector of hippocampus was examined.
小胶质细胞是大脑固有免疫系统的主要组成部分，在阿尔茨海默病（AD）中会被激活。我们对人类海马体8个区域中活化小胶质细胞（AMG）的密度进行了量化，以确定其密度是否与老年斑（SP）和神经原纤维缠结（NFT）的形成相关。在8名年轻成年人、9名非痴呆老年人和9名患有AD的痴呆患者中，对铁蛋白染色的小胶质细胞、 Bielschowsky染色的神经炎性斑块以及含有NFT的神经元胞体进行了计数。在非痴呆老年人中，小胶质细胞活化程度略高。在AD患者中，海马体所有区域的活化更为显著。大多数AMG广泛分布于神经毡中，并不局限于SP或NFT。在任何区域内，老年斑计数与AMG计数均无关联。神经原纤维缠结计数与一个区域（海马下脚）内的AMG计数显著相关。当对区域内和区域间的差异进行统计学因素分析时，AMG的负荷与NFT的负荷显著相关（r = 0.34；p < 0.005），但与SP无关。穿通通路起始处的神经病理变化与终末区域的顺行性小胶质细胞活化显著相关。这些观察结果表明，小胶质细胞活化与AD病理特征之间的相关性很少显著。当存在显著关联时，涉及的是NFT而非SP，并且取决于所检查的海马体区域。
