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E Braak

Publications and source records attributed to E Braak.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources
PubMed1980

Age-related alterations of the proximal axon segment in lamina IIIab-pyramidal cells of the human isocortex. A Golgi and fine structural study.

In the human isocortex preferably the pyramidal cells of layer IIIab are subjected to a conspicuous age-related alteration in that they develop spindle-shaped enlargements of their proximal axon segment. In Golgi impregnations such IIIab-pyramidal cells with an axon dilatation do not display obvious alterations in the ramification or spine density of their dendrites. Electron microscopically different degrees of this alteration can be recognized; beginning with a cone-shaped and slight dilatation and culminating in a giant spindle-shaped enlargement of the proximal axon segment. The fasciculated microtubules normally characterizing the initial segment are pushed aside or are lacking. Lipofuscin granules, RER cisterns and ribosome rosettes penetrate into the dilatation. The axolemma of those parts of the axon segment in the vicinity of which lipofuscin granules can be encountered lacks a dense axolemmal undercoating. As concerns the adjacent profiles of the dilatation there are no obvious alterations in comparison to a normal proximal axon segment. A slender process arises distally from the dilatation showing the morphological characteristics of the axon initial segment.

Aged↗
PubMed1978

Distribution of myosin and the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFA protein) in rat spinal cord and in the human frontal cortex as revealed by immunofluorescence microscopy.

The glial fibrillary acidic (GFA) protein and myosin were localized in rat spinal cord and human frontal cortex using specific antibodies against GFA protein from human spinal cord and highly purified smooth myosin from chicken gizzard by means of an indirect immunofluorescence microscopical approach. A strong GFA protein and myosin immunoreactivity was found in astrocytes of the white and grey matter and in the external glial limitans membrane. The very fine branches of astrocytic processes stained with anti-GFA protein, but not with anti-myosin. Similar results were obtained with the human frontal cortex, where myosin antibodies failed to reveal the very fine branches of protoplasmic astrocytes. As a whole, staining with the GFA protein antiserum was more crisp than with the myosin antibody.

Animals↗
PubMed1977

The fine structure of myelinated nerve cell bodies in the bulbus olfactorius of man.

In the bulbus olfactorius of man numerous myelinated nerve cell bodies occur in the stratum plexiforme internum and stratum granulosum internum. In many respects they resemble the neighbouring granule cells: small chromatin clumps border on more than half of the circumference of the nucleus, the thin cytoplasmic rim contains abundant polysomes and sometimes pigment complexes with numerous light vacuoles, the cells often show a process which extends up to the stratum glomerulosum, the perikarya are devoid of synaptic contacts whereas the proximal segment of the peripheral processes display rare contacts. The myelin sheath varies in thickness consisting of 2 to 24 lamellae with distances between the major dense lines ranging from 9.3 to 11.3 nm. The myelin sheath may enclose the cell body completely or partially and accompany the proximal segment of the process arising from the perikaryon. On partially enveloped perikarya, the myelin lamellae end in formations like those of the node of Ranvier, though often less regularly. Within the compact myelin sheath all of its lamellae may be distended for a short distance by glial cytoplasm as in the Schmidt-Lanterman incisures of peripheral nerve fibres. Adjacent to the outermost myelin lamella myelinated axons and cell bodies, tentatively identified as oligodendrocytes, as well as granule cells may be closely joined.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1977

[Nucleus striae terminalis in the brain of adult man. Pigment architectionical study].

In the present article the shape and extension of the nucleus striae terminalis in the human adult brain is described. By means of selective staining of intracellular lipofuscin granules with aldehydefuchsin it is possible to examine the three dimensional shape of the griseum in complete series of 800 micrometer thick slices. The cells of the necleus striae terminalis accompany the stria terminalis along its whole course between the anterior commissure and the corpus amygdaloideum. The paraseptal part of the nucleus is divided into a pars externa and a pars interna. Along the thalamic course of the stria fibers, however, a variably shaped pars medialis can be separated from a pars paracaudata reaching the corpus amygdaloideum as an unbroken cellular column. Possible connections between stria terminalis and its bednucleus are discussed.

Aged↗
PubMed1976

The pyramidal cells of Betz within the cingulate and precentral gigantopyramidal field in the human brain. A Golgi and pigmentarchitectonic study.

It can be demonstrated with the aid of Golgi-, Nissl-, and pigment preparations that the Betz cells represent a homogeneous class of giant cells within the human brain, which can readily be distinguished from other large pyramids by their densely aggregated lipofuscin deposits. In addition to the primary motor field (4, Brodmann), there exists only a small area on the medial surface of the hemisphere in front of the central sulcus which also contains large Betz pyramids in layer Vb. This recently discovered sulcus (Braak, 1976b). Compared with the Betz cells of the primary motor field (4, Brodmann), those of the cingulate area display numerous primitive traits. A small number of short basal dendrites springs off from the cell body. The apical dendrite forks in a short distance from the perikaryon repeatedly but issues only few side branches. A spine-free proximal dendritic segment is poorly developed or lacking. Moreover, numerous spines are encountered along the surface of the soma. In view of their primitive features the large pyramids of the cingulate gigantopyramidal area are interpreted as the forerunners of the precentral Betz pyramids.

Aged↗
PubMed1976

On the fine structure of the small, heavily pigmented non-pyramidal cells in lamina II and upper lamina III of the human isocortex.

With the aid of a newly developed technique for the successive examination of both the Golgi and pigment picture of individual neurons (Braak, 1974a) Braak (1974b) demonstrated that within lamina II and upper lamina III of the human isocortex, heavily pigmented non-pyramidal cells are distributed irregularly and sparsely. The lipofuscin pigment granules serve as excellent internal markers to identify these non-pyramidal cells in ultrathin sections. This favourable circumstance facilitates the study of these interneurons in the electron microscope. The heavily pigmented non-pyramidal cells are small, spherical to avoid with diameters of about 12-15 mum. One pole of the cell comprising a large cytoplasmic area gives rise to a few dendrites, while the other pole is occupied by the nucleus and in some cases is in close apposition to another nerve cell body. The nucleus is deeply invaginated by the large cytoplasmic area and occasionally displays nuclear inclusions. Among the usual organelles distributed within the large cytoplasmic area the mitochondria with a moderately electron dense matrix are abundant and the coarse lipofuscin pigment granules are the most striking elements. The latter contain densely packed filamentous or tubular material and a single vacuole. The perikaryon rarely receives more than 3 type I and type tii synapses per section per cell, whereas the dendrites receive numerous synapses of both type I and type II. Within the apposition zone to another nerve cell body (which in no case is a heavily pigmented non-pyramidal cell) puncta adhaerentia occur and also contacts in which the cleft of 8 nm is intersected by a dense stratum. Some of the ultrastructural findings are summarized in the schematic drawing of Figure 15.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

[Staining the Nissl bodies in 4--10 microns thick Araldite sections with an area of about 2x2 cm (author's transl)].

For light microscopy 4--10 microns thick sections with an area of 2x2 cm o Araldite-embedded tissue (human autopsy brain) are stained in 1% aqueous methylene blue at 65 degrees C for 4--12 hours and are differentiated in 98% ethanol for some seconds or very few minutes. The Nissl bodies, nuclei and nucleoli are stained dark blue, the neuropil is nearly colourless.

Cerebral Cortex↗
PubMed1976

[Do the island neurons of regio entorhinalis belong to the class of pyramid or star-shaped cells?].

In the vicinity of the collateral sulcus the cellular islands of the entorhinal region (lamina alpha of the outer principal layer = Pre-alpha) fuse, forming a cellular plate which runs obliquely through the outer laminae. Finally, the cellular elements of Pre-alpha lie in between the third and the fourth layer of the isocortex. The islands are mainly composed of star-shaped nerve cells with thorny dendrites and an axon extending into the white matter. Within the reaches of the oblique plate the shape of these cellular elements underlies an alteration. Apical and basal dendrites become more and more recognizable, the cell body gains the shape of a pyramid. For this reason, we consider the star-shaped neurons of the islands to be modified pyramidal cells. They are compared with the genuine star cells (Golgi-II-cells) of the layer. Distinguishing characteristics not only of the Golgi- but also of the pigment-picture allow the unequivocal distinction between the modified pyramids and the Golgi-II-cells.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

On the fine structure of the external glial layer in the isocortex of man.

The surface of the external glial layer of the isocortex in the human temporal lobe is generally slightly undulated, with a few protrusions and indentations. The surface is formed by an uninterrupted basement membrane which is continuous over the surface no matter how tortuous it becomes. The overall thickness of the glial layer is generally 15 to 25 mum, but diminishes to about 5 mum immediately beneath blood vessels. It consists mainly of a variable number of stacked glial cell processes. Two groups of cell bodies are encountered particularly in the middle and lower levels of the glial layer. Most of the cells are specialized fibrous astrocytes. They are characterized by eccentrically placed, rounded nuclei with homogeneously dispersed chromatin, and electron-lucent cytoplasm rich in filaments. Lipofuscin pigment granules occupy large areas of the perikaryon. The astroglial cells give rise to four types of processes: foot-processes, tangential and radial processes, and processes irregular in outline. The foot-processes ascend towards the cortical surface and terminate as flat expansions spreading out immediately beneath the basement membrane. Contiguous terminal expansions are connected by gap junctions. The individual profiles are irregular in form and fit together like in a jig-saw puzzle. The plasmalemma beneath the basement membrane is underlined by a fuzzy material, which is penetrated by glial filaments. In the terminal expansions individual or groups of mitochondria are abundant. The tangential processes are straight and slender and form a lattice within the middle and deep level of the external glial layer. They contain numerous filaments, evenly distributed or fasciculated. The remainder of the lattice is filled up by a considerable number of processes irregular in outline and varying greatly in size. They contain fewer filaments than the tangential processes, coursing in all directions, and glycogen particles. In both types of processes only a few mitochondria are present. These processes are also connected by gap junctions and desmosomes, too. Large cytoplasmic areas of astroglial cells localized in the deepest portion of the glial layer protrude into the neuropil of the molecular layer, giving rise to several radiate processes, which extend deeper into the cortex. The second, heterogeneous group of cell bodies is characterized by elongated nuclei, ovoid or irregular in outline, which are smaller than those of astroglial cells, and contain blocks of condensed chromatin; a thin cytoplasmic rim generating a few appendages surrounds the nucleus. The first sub-type is characterized by a nucleus with large chromatin blocks bordering the inner nuclear membrane and a medium-dense cytoplasmic matrix. The second sub-type displays smaller chromatin condensations at the inner nuclear membrane and many microtubules are scattered throughout an electron-lucent cytoplasm.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A silver impregnation method for labeling both Alzheimer paired helical filaments and their polypeptides separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

The Gallyas silver impregnation which is specific to neurofibrillary changes of paired helical filaments (PHF) and 15 nm straight filaments, was adapted to stain polypeptides separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Both PHF and tau polypeptides were readily and consistently stained by the Gallyas stain. This technique stained PHF greater than tau greater than high-molecular-weight microtubule-associated polypeptides (MAPS). Tubulin was stained only weakly. Neurofilament triplet, ubiquitin, bovine serum albumin and histones were unstained. The staining of PHF and tau polypeptides by Gallyas silver stain is consistent with the presence of tau in PHF.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Staging of Alzheimer's disease-related neurofibrillary changes.

Specific immunocytochemical methods (AT8) permit evaluation of neuronal changes well before the actual formation of neurofibrillary tangles and neuropil threads. Initial changes are found in the transentorhinal region (temporal lobe). From here the destructive process encroaches upon the entorhinal region, Ammon's horn, and neocortex. Initial changes occur in comparatively young individuals and can also be observed at the same predilection sites in a few species of old aged domestic animals. In a later state of destruction, AT8 immunoreactive neurons develop typical argyrophilic neurofibrillary tangles and neuropil threads. Six stages of disease propagation can be distinguished with respect to the location of the tangle-bearing neurons and the severity of changes (transentorhinal stages I-II: clinically silent cases; limbic stages III-IV: incipient Alzheimer's disease; neocortical stages V-VI: fully developed Alzheimer's disease). Whole mount techniques reveal the lesional pattern of the particularly severely involved superficial entorhinal layer as seen from the free surface of the parahippocampal gyrus. This approach facilitates recognition of even subtle pathologic changes throughout the entire extent of cortical territories such as the transentorhinal and entorhinal regions.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Age-related progression of tau pathology in brains of baboons.

Recently, cytoskeletal changes associated with abnormally phosphorylated tau protein were demonstrated in neurons and glial cells of two aged baboons (Papio). The present study examines the effects of age on the development of tau pathology in baboons. Brains of 50 baboons ranging in age from 1 to 30 years were categorized into four age groups: Group I: 1-10 years [n = 9], group II: 11-20 years [n = 13], group III: 21-25 years [n = 17], group IV: 26-30 years [n = 11]). Whole hemisphere sections (100 microm) were examined using phosphorylation-dependent anti-tau antibodies. Cytoskeletal changes were completely absent in animals of group I. In group II four animals (31%) exhibited cytoskeletal changes which were rated as mild or moderate. In group III abnormal tau was found in 12 brains (71%) ranging in severity from mild to severe. Finally, in group IV 10 out of 11 animals (91%) exhibited some degree of tau pathology which was rated as severe in 4 animals (36%). A statistically significant relationship was found between advancing age and progression of tau pathology in baboons. In conclusion, the present findings underline the value of the baboon as a potential nonhuman primate model for age-related tau pathology afflicting the human brain.

Aging↗