NEUROFIBRILLARY TANGLES WITHOUT CELL LOSS IN THE LATERAL VESTIBULAR NUCLEUS OF PATIENTS WITH ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE

The lateral vestibular nucleus (LVN, nucleus of Deiters) was examined in the brains of four control subjects and four patients with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT). Neuronal counts on sections stained with silver and a polyclonal antibody to human choline acetyltransferase ( ChAT) revealed an undiminished number of LVN neurons in patients with DAT. Numerous silver-stained neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) were found in the DAT group, some also in the LVN of controls. These findings su ggest that DAT affects LVN neurons, however without causing neuronal l oss.