Differences in trace element concentrations between Alzheimer and "normal"human brain tissue using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA)

Brain samples obtained from the Netherlands Brain Bank were taken from the superior frontal gyrus, superior parietal gyrus and medial temporal gyrus o f 'normal' and Alzheimer's disease subjects in order to determine elemental concentrations and compare elemental composition. Brain samples from the c ortex were taken from 18 subject, eight 'normals' (6 males and 2 females) a nd eleven with Alzheimer's disease, (1 male and 10 females) and the followi ng elemental concentrations, Na, K, Fe, Zn, Se, Br, Rb, Ag, Cs, Ba, and Eu were determined by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The ele ment which showed the greatest difference was Br, which was found to be sig nificantly elevated in the cortex of Alzheimer's disease brains as compared to the 'normals' at significance (p <0.001).