TY - JOUR
T1 - Presence of apolipoprotein E on extracellular neurofibrillary tangles and on meningeal blood vessels precedes the Alzheimer β-amyloid deposition
AU - Yamaguchi, Haruyasu
AU - Ishiguro, Koji
AU - Sugihara, Shiro
AU - Nakazato, Yoichi
AU - Kawarabayashi, Takeshi
AU - Sun, Xiaoyan
AU - Hirai, Shunsaku
PY - 1994/11/1
Y1 - 1994/11/1
N2 - The localization of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) has been examined immunohistochemically in the autopsied brains of middle-aged and old-aged control subjects, with and without amyloid β protein (Aβ) deposits, and of Alzheimer's disease patients. Senile plaques were consistently labeled with ApoE antiserum even in the very early stage of senile plaque formation seen in the fifth decade. In the cerebellar molecular layer, small dots of ApoE immunoreactivity, which were prominent in the Alzheimer's disease subjects, were observed in addition to immunoreactivity in diffuse plaques. ApoE antisera labeled all of the extracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFT), whereas only a small minority of extracellular NFT were positive for Aβ. A punctate pattern of ApoE immunoreactivity was seen at the media of the meningeal vessels lacking amyloid, when senile plaques were present in the nearby cortex. In the early stage of amyloid angiopathy, the distribution of ApoE immunoreactivity was much more extensive than that of Aβ positivity. These findings suggest that ApoE accumulates in the early stage of senile plaque formation and, furthermore, that ApoE accumulation precedes Aβ deposition in extracellular NFT and amyloid angiopathy.
AB - The localization of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) has been examined immunohistochemically in the autopsied brains of middle-aged and old-aged control subjects, with and without amyloid β protein (Aβ) deposits, and of Alzheimer's disease patients. Senile plaques were consistently labeled with ApoE antiserum even in the very early stage of senile plaque formation seen in the fifth decade. In the cerebellar molecular layer, small dots of ApoE immunoreactivity, which were prominent in the Alzheimer's disease subjects, were observed in addition to immunoreactivity in diffuse plaques. ApoE antisera labeled all of the extracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFT), whereas only a small minority of extracellular NFT were positive for Aβ. A punctate pattern of ApoE immunoreactivity was seen at the media of the meningeal vessels lacking amyloid, when senile plaques were present in the nearby cortex. In the early stage of amyloid angiopathy, the distribution of ApoE immunoreactivity was much more extensive than that of Aβ positivity. These findings suggest that ApoE accumulates in the early stage of senile plaque formation and, furthermore, that ApoE accumulation precedes Aβ deposition in extracellular NFT and amyloid angiopathy.
KW - Alzheimer's disease Dementia
KW - Amyloid β protein
KW - Apolipoprotein E
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U2 - 10.1007/BF00389492
DO - 10.1007/BF00389492
M3 - Article
C2 - 7847069
AN - SCOPUS:0028080483
VL - 88
SP - 413
EP - 419
JO - Acta Neuropathologica
JF - Acta Neuropathologica
SN - 0001-6322
IS - 5
ER -