Author/Editor     Korbo, Lise; Bogdanović, Nenad
Title     Total number of hippocampal neurons in aids patients and controls
Type     članek
Source     Acta Stereol
Vol. and No.     Letnik 18, št. 2
Publication year     1999
Volume     str. 177-83
Language     eng
Abstract     The hippocampal region of the brain, an essential component of learning and memory processes, is severily affected in Alzheimer's dementia. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is often acompanied by symptoms of dementia characterized by progressive cognitive impairment, personality changes and motor disturbances. A loss of 30% of the neocortical neurons in brains from AIDS patients has been demonstrated in several studies, and this neuron loss appears to be independent of whether or not the patients were clinicaly demented. With the neocortical loss in mind, the aim of the present study was to investigate a possible neuron loss in the hippocampus in non-demented cases. A stereological method - the optical fractionator - was used to estimate the total number of neurons in the five subregions of the hippocampus in nine AIDS patients and 10 controls. No difference in total neuron number was found between the two groups.
Descriptors     ACQUIRED IMMUNODEFICIENCY SYNDROME
HIPPOCAMPUS
NEURONS
DEMENTIA
CELL COUNT