Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1988 Jun;51(6):745–752. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.51.6.745

The relevance of the Lewy body to the pathogenesis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease.

W R Gibb 1, A J Lees 1
PMCID: PMC1033142  PMID: 2841426

Abstract

The Lewy body is a distinctive neuronal inclusion that is always found in the substantia nigra and other specific brain regions in Parkinson's disease. It is mainly composed of structurally altered neurofilament, and occurs wherever there is excessive loss of neurons. It occurs in some elderly individuals and rarely in other degenerative diseases of the central nervous system. In 273 brains of patients dying from disorders other than Parkinson's disease, the age-specific prevalence of Lewy bodies increased from 3.8% to 12.8% between the sixth and ninth decades. Associated pathological findings suggest that these cases of incidental Lewy body disease are presymptomatic cases of Parkinson's disease, and confirm the importance of age (time) in the evolution of the disease. In view of the common and widespread occurrence of this disorder we propose that endogenous mechanisms operating in early life may be more important than environmental agents in the pathogenesis of Lewy bodies and Parkinson's disease.

Full text

PDF
745

Images in this article

747Image
on p.747
750Image
on p.750

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Agid Y., Blin J. Nerve cell death in degenerative diseases of the central nervous system: clinical aspects. Ciba Found Symp. 1987;126:3–29. doi: 10.1002/9780470513422.ch2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BEHEIM-SCHWARZBACH D. Uber Zelleib-Veränderungen im Nucleus coeruleus bei Parkinson-Symptomen. J Nerv Ment Dis. 1952 Dec;116(6):619–632. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. BETHLEM J., DEN HARTOG JAGER W. A. The incidence and characteristics of Lewy bodies in idiopathic paralysis agitans (Parkinson's disease). J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1960 Feb;23:74–80. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.23.1.74. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bernheimer H., Birkmayer W., Hornykiewicz O., Jellinger K., Seitelberger F. Brain dopamine and the syndromes of Parkinson and Huntington. Clinical, morphological and neurochemical correlations. J Neurol Sci. 1973 Dec;20(4):415–455. doi: 10.1016/0022-510x(73)90175-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Burns R. S., Markey S. P., Phillips J. M., Chiueh C. C. The neurotoxicity of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine in the monkey and man. Can J Neurol Sci. 1984 Feb;11(1 Suppl):166–168. doi: 10.1017/s0317167100046345. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Calne D. B., Langston J. W. Aetiology of Parkinson's disease. Lancet. 1983 Dec 24;2(8365-66):1457–1459. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(83)90802-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Dickson D. W., Kress Y., Crowe A., Yen S. H. Monoclonal antibodies to Alzheimer neurofibrillary tangles. 2. Demonstration of a common antigenic determinant between ANT and neurofibrillary degeneration in progressive supranuclear palsy. Am J Pathol. 1985 Aug;120(2):292–303. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Dooling E. C., Schoene W. C., Richardson E. P., Jr Hallervorden-Spatz syndrome. Arch Neurol. 1974 Jan;30(1):70–83. doi: 10.1001/archneur.1974.00490310072012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Eldridge R., Ince S. E. The low concordance rate for Parkinson's disease in twins: a possible explanation. Neurology. 1984 Oct;34(10):1354–1356. doi: 10.1212/wnl.34.10.1354. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Forno L. S., Langston J. W., DeLanney L. E., Irwin I., Ricaurte G. A. Locus ceruleus lesions and eosinophilic inclusions in MPTP-treated monkeys. Ann Neurol. 1986 Oct;20(4):449–455. doi: 10.1002/ana.410200403. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Golbe L. I., Cody R. A., Duvoisin R. C. Smoking and Parkinson's disease. Search for a dose-response relationship. Arch Neurol. 1986 Aug;43(8):774–778. doi: 10.1001/archneur.1986.00520080022014. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Goldman J. E., Yen S. H., Chiu F. C., Peress N. S. Lewy bodies of Parkinson's disease contain neurofilament antigens. Science. 1983 Sep 9;221(4615):1082–1084. doi: 10.1126/science.6308771. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Hirano A., Kurland L. T., Sayre G. P. Familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. A subgroup characterized by posterior and spinocerebellar tract involvement and hyaline inclusions in the anterior horn cells. Arch Neurol. 1967 Mar;16(3):232–243. doi: 10.1001/archneur.1967.00470210008002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Hunter S. The rostral mesencephalon in Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. Acta Neuropathol. 1985;68(1):53–58. doi: 10.1007/BF00688956. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Kahn J., Anderton B. H., Gibb W. R., Lees A. J., Wells F. R., Marsden C. D. Neuronal filaments in Alzheimer's, Pick's, and Parkinson's diseases. N Engl J Med. 1985 Aug 22;313(8):520–521. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198508223130817. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Koller W., O'Hara R., Weiner W., Lang A., Nutt J., Agid Y., Bonnet A. M., Jankovic J. Relationship of aging to Parkinson's disease. Adv Neurol. 1987;45:317–321. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Kosaka K. Lewy bodies in cerebral cortex, report of three cases. Acta Neuropathol. 1978 May 24;42(2):127–134. doi: 10.1007/BF00690978. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Kosaka K., Yoshimura M., Ikeda K., Budka H. Diffuse type of Lewy body disease: progressive dementia with abundant cortical Lewy bodies and senile changes of varying degree--a new disease? Clin Neuropathol. 1984 Sep-Oct;3(5):185–192. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Mutch W. J., Dingwall-Fordyce I., Downie A. W., Paterson J. G., Roy S. K. Parkinson's disease in a Scottish city. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1986 Feb 22;292(6519):534–536. doi: 10.1136/bmj.292.6519.534. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Nakazato Y., Sasaki A., Hirato J., Ishida Y. Immunohistochemical localization of neurofilament protein in neuronal degenerations. Acta Neuropathol. 1984;64(1):30–36. doi: 10.1007/BF00695603. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Qualman S. J., Haupt H. M., Yang P., Hamilton S. R. Esophageal Lewy bodies associated with ganglion cell loss in achalasia. Similarity to Parkinson's disease. Gastroenterology. 1984 Oct;87(4):848–856. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Rajput A. H., Rozdilsky B., Hornykiewicz O., Shannak K., Lee T., Seeman P. Reversible drug-induced parkinsonism. Clinicopathologic study of two cases. Arch Neurol. 1982 Oct;39(10):644–646. doi: 10.1001/archneur.1982.00510220042009. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. SIGWALD J., LAPRESLE J., RAVERDY P., RECONDO J. ATROPHIE C'ER'EBELLEUSE FAMILIALE AVEC ASSOCIATION DE L'ESIONS NIG'ERIENNES ET SPINALES. Presse Med. 1964 Feb 26;72:557–562. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Sachdev H. S., Forno L. S., Kane C. A. Joseph disease: a multisystem degenerative disorder of the nervous system. Neurology. 1982 Feb;32(2):192–195. doi: 10.1212/wnl.32.2.192. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Tomonaga M. Neuropathology of the locus ceruleus: a semi-quantitative study. J Neurol. 1983;230(4):231–240. doi: 10.1007/BF00313699. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. WOODARD J. S. Concentric hyaline inclusion body formation in mental disease analysis of twenty-seven cases. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 1962 Jul;21:442–449. doi: 10.1097/00005072-196207000-00012. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Ward C. D., Duvoisin R. C., Ince S. E., Nutt J. D., Eldridge R., Calne D. B. Parkinson's disease in 65 pairs of twins and in a set of quadruplets. Neurology. 1983 Jul;33(7):815–824. doi: 10.1212/wnl.33.7.815. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Whitehouse P. J., Hedreen J. C., White C. L., 3rd, Price D. L. Basal forebrain neurons in the dementia of Parkinson disease. Ann Neurol. 1983 Mar;13(3):243–248. doi: 10.1002/ana.410130304. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Wisniewski H. M., Shek J. W., Gruca S., Sturman J. A. Aluminum-induced neurofibrillary changes in axons and dendrites. Acta Neuropathol. 1984;63(3):190–197. doi: 10.1007/BF00685244. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Yokochi M., Narabayashi H., Iizuka R., Nagatsu T. Juvenile parkinsonism--some clinical, pharmacological, and neuropathological aspects. Adv Neurol. 1984;40:407–413. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES