1/172. arm levitation in progressive supranuclear palsy.Spontaneous arm levitation (SAL) is well-recognized in cortical-basal ganglionic degeneration, but not in other neurodegenerative diseases. We report six cases of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) with SAL. Pathologic examination in four revealed the classic features of PSP with additional areas of focal cortical degeneration. We conclude that SAL can occur in PSP and its occurrence may be a marker of cortical degeneration.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/172. Whipple's disease mimicking progressive supranuclear palsy: the diagnostic value of eye movement recording.Treatable causes of parkinsonian syndromes are rare; Whipple's disease is one of them. A patient is described who presented with a parkinsonian syndrome and abnormal vertical gaze. Measurement of eye movements showed marked slowing of upward saccades, moderate slowing of downward saccades, a full range of voluntary vertical eye movements, curved trajectories of oblique saccades, and absence of square wave jerks. These features, atypical of progressive supranuclear palsy, suggested the diagnosis of Whipple's disease, which was subsequently confirmed by polymerase chain reaction analysis of intestinal biopsy material. Precise measurement of the dynamic properties of saccadic eye movements in parkinsonian patients may provide a means of identifying treatable disorders.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/172. Clinical genetics of familial progressive supranuclear palsy.Recent studies have shown that progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) could be inherited, but the pattern of inheritance and the spectrum of the clinical findings in relatives are unknown. We here report 12 pedigrees, confirmed by pathology in four probands, with familial PSP. Pathological diagnosis was confirmed according to recently reported internationally agreed criteria. The spectrum of the clinical phenotypes in these families was variable including 34 typical cases of PSP (12 probands plus 22 secondary cases), three patients with postural tremor, three with dementia, one with parkinsonism, two with tremor, dystonia, gaze palsy and tics, and one with gait disturbance. The presence of affected members in at least two generations in eight of the families and the absence of consanguinity suggests autosomal dominant transmission with incomplete penetrance. We conclude that hereditary PSP is more frequent than previously thought and that the scarcity of familial cases may be related to a lack of recognition of the variable phenotypic expression of the disease.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/172. A mutation at codon 279 (N279K) in exon 10 of the Tau gene causes a tauopathy with dementia and supranuclear palsy.Recently intronic and exonic mutations in the Tau gene have been found to be associated with familial neurodegenerative syndromes characterized not only by a predominantly frontotemporal dementia but also by the presence of neurological signs consistent with the dysfunction of multiple subcortical neuronal circuitries. Among families, the symptomatology appears to vary in quality and severity in relation to the specific Tau gene mutation and often may include parkinsonism, supranuclear palsies, and/or myoclonus, in addition to dementia. We carried out molecular genetic and neuropathological studies on two patients from a French family presenting, early in their fifth decade, a cognitive impairment and supranuclear palsy followed by an akinetic rigid syndrome and dementia. The proband died severely demented 7 years after the onset of the symptoms; currently, his brother is still alive although his disease is progressing. In both patients, we found a Tau gene mutation in exon 10 at codon 279, resulting in an asparagine to lysine substitution (N279K). Neuropathologically, widespread neuronal and glial tau accumulation in the cortex, basal ganglia, brain stem nuclei as well as in the white matter were the hallmark of the disease. These deposits were shown by immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy, using a battery of antibodies to phosphorylation-dependent and phosphorylation-independent epitopes present in multiple tau regions. In the neocortex, tau-immunopositive glial cells were more numerous than immunopositive neurons; the deeper cortical layers as well as the white matter adjacent to the cortex contained the largest amount of immunolabeled glial cells. In contrast, some brain stem nuclei contained more neurons with tau deposits than immunolabeled glial cells. The correlation of clinical, neuropathological and molecular genetic findings emphasize the phenotypic heterogeneity of diseases caused by Tau gene mutations. Furthermore, to test the effect of the N279K mutation and compare it with the effect of the P301L exon 10 mutation on alternative splicing of Tau exon 10, we used an exon amplification assay. Our results suggest that the N279K mutation affects splicing similar to the intronic mutations, allowing exon 10 to be incorporated more frequently in the Tau transcript.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/172. "Apraxia of eyelid opening" induced by levodopa therapy and apomorphine in atypical parkinsonism (possible progressive supranuclear palsy): a case report.We report a female patient in whom so-called apraxia of eyelid opening (AEO) developed after the onset of possible progressive supranuclear palsy (national institute of neurological disorders and stroke criteria) and the introduction of antiparkinsonian medications including levodopa. Although parkinsonian symptoms responded poorly to levodopa, AEO worsened after increasing levodopa dosage and disappeared when levodopa was discontinued. Later, a dose of apomorphine widely accepted for acute tests had no significant effect on limb motor activity but induced AEO. overall, these observations are grounds for thinking that AEO developing in the course of parkinsonism may be either disease- or drug-related. The possibility of manipulating dopaminergic treatment should always be considered when dealing with AEO associated with parkinsonism.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/172. Progressive supranuclear palsy pathology caused by a novel silent mutation in exon 10 of the tau gene: expansion of the disease phenotype caused by tau gene mutations.Genetic mutations in the tau gene on chromosome 17 are known to cause frontotemporal dementias. We have identified a novel silent mutation (S305S) in the tau gene in a subject without significant atrophy or cellular degeneration of the frontal and temporal cortices. Rather the cellular pathology was characteristic of progressive supranuclear palsy, with neurofibrillary tangles concentrating within the subcortical regions of the basal ganglia. Two affected family members presented with symptoms of dementia and later developed neurological deficits including abnormality of vertical gaze and extrapyramidal signs. The third presented with dystonia of the left arm and dysarthria, and later developed a supranuclear gaze palsy and falls. The mutation is located in exon 10 of the tau gene and forms part of a stem-loop structure at the 5' splice donor site. Although the mutation does not give rise to an amino acid change in the tau protein, functional exon-trapping experiments show that it results in a significant 4.8-fold increase in the splicing of exon 10, resulting in the presence of tau containing four microtubule-binding repeats. This study provides direct molecular evidence for a functional mutation that causes progressive supranuclear palsy pathology and demonstrates that mutations in the tau gene are pleiotropic.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.4015124994179keywords = palsy, dysarthria (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/172. Neuronal loss in Onuf's nucleus in three patients with progressive supranuclear palsy.Disorders of micturition have been reported only sporadically in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). We report the results of a clinicopathological study of 3 patients with a definite diagnosis of PSP at various stages of their illness with sphincter abnormalities. electromyography of the sphincter muscles was performed in all 3 patients and was abnormal in 2. Morphological and morphometric evaluation of Onuf's nucleus in the sacral spinal cord, which is involved in sphincter control, showed severe cell loss, presence of neurofibrillary tangles, neuropil threads, and glial inclusions. We conclude that bladder dysfunction and abnormal sphincter electromyographic results are due to pathological changes in Onuf's nucleus, and we propose that sphincter abnormalities should be included in the list of possible symptoms of PSP.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/172. Corticobasal degeneration: an autopsy case clinically diagnosed as progressive supranuclear palsy.We report an autopsy case diagnosed clinically as progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), but neuropathologically confirmed as corticobasal degeneration (CBD). A 56-year-old Japanese woman slowly developed parkinsonism, dementia, character change, followed by vertical gaze palsy and dystonia. Brain MRI demonstrated diffuse cerebral atrophy with severe shrinkage of the brain stem tegmentum. The SPECT images using 123I-IMP disclosed symmetrical hypoperfusion in the frontal lobes. She died of respiratory failure at the age of 71.Gross inspection of the brain showed diffuse, symmetrical atrophy of the cerebrum and marked atrophy of the Luysian body, globus pallidus, substantia nigra and nuclei of the brain stem tegmentum. Microscopically, neuronal loss and fibrillary gliosis were observed in the Luysian body, globus pallidus, substantia nigra and nuclei of the brain stem tegmentum. The cerebellar dentate nucleus showed mild neuronal loss with some grumose degeneration. neurofibrillary tangles were found only in the Luysian body, substantia nigra and raphe nuclei, whilst tau-positive inclusions were observed more extensively. Astrocytic plaques and swollen achromatic neurones were found in the postcentral gyrus. There were no tuft-shaped astrocytes in the brain. The clinicopathological similarities and differences between PSP and CBD are discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/172. Parkinson's disease associated with argyrophilic grains clinically resembling progressive supranuclear palsy: an autopsy case.A 70-year-old male began to show akinesia, rigidity of extremities, finger tremor, disturbed vertical external ocular movement, and nuchal dystonia, which progressed slowly. Brain CT scan and magnetic resonance images showed slight atrophy of the frontal lobe and slight enlargement of the lateral ventricles. Hasegawa's dementia rating scale-revised version gave a moderate score of 11/30 points. He died of pneumonia at the age of 76. The clinical diagnosis was progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). However, there were no neuropathological characteristics of PSP. Neuropathologically, Parkinson's disease was diagnosed. In addition, many argyrophilic grains (ArGs) in the gray matter were stained, especially in the insula, amygdala, hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, lateral occipitotemporal gyrus, and substantia nigra, by the Gallyas-Braak method. We consider that ArGs could modify the symptoms of Parkinson's disease and that Parkinson's disease with ArGs may show a PSP-like clinical course.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/172. An autopsy case of Alzheimer's disease with a progressive supranuclear palsy overlap.A 74-year-old man developed abnormal forgetfulness, soon followed by unstable speech content and marked disorientation. At 77 years of age, the patient started to occasionally fall, an aspect of progressive supranuclear palsy. He then became bedridden. The patient eventually died of pneumonia at 79 years of age. Neuropathological examination revealed profiles of both progressive supranuclear palsy and Alzheimer's disease. Although the two conditions both belong to tauopathy, their pathologically proven combination was rare. Furthermore, the case had the possibility of being a subgroup of tauopathy.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2keywords = palsy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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