3D Analysis of the Synaptic Organization in the Entorhinal Cortex in Alzheimer's Disease.

ABSTRACT: The entorhinal cortex (EC) is especially vulnerable in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD). In particular, cognitive deficits have been linked to alterations in the upper layers of EC. In the present report, we examined Layers II and III from eight human brain autopsies (four subjects with no recorded neurologic alterations and four AD cases). We used stereological methods to assess cortical atrophy of the EC and possible changes in the volume occupied by different cortical elements (neuronal and glial cell bodies; blood vessels; and neuropil). We performed 3D ultrastructural analyses of synapses using focused ion beam/scanning electron microscopy (FIB/SEM) to examine possible alterations related to AD. At the light microscope level, we found a significantly lower volume fraction

SUBMITTER: Dominguez-Alvaro M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8225407 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May-Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature