Cortical microvascular raspberries and ageing : an independent but not exclusive relationship
Ek Olofsson, Henric LU
; Österling Delshammar, Thea
and Englund, Elisabet
LU
(2023)
In Acta Neuropathologica Communications
11.
- Abstract
Introduction: Raspberries are cerebral microvascular formations of unknown origin, defined as three or more transversally sectioned vascular lumina surrounded by a common perivascular space. We have previously demonstrated an increased raspberry density in the cortex of patients with vascular dementia and cerebral atherosclerosis, while studies by other authors on overlapping and synonymously defined vascular entities mainly associate them with advancing age. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between raspberries and age in a large study sample while including multiple potential confounding factors in the analysis.
Materials and methods: Our study sample consisted of 263 individuals aged 20–97 years who... (More)
Introduction: Raspberries are cerebral microvascular formations of unknown origin, defined as three or more transversally sectioned vascular lumina surrounded by a common perivascular space. We have previously demonstrated an increased raspberry density in the cortex of patients with vascular dementia and cerebral atherosclerosis, while studies by other authors on overlapping and synonymously defined vascular entities mainly associate them with advancing age. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between raspberries and age in a large study sample while including multiple potential confounding factors in the analysis.
Materials and methods: Our study sample consisted of 263 individuals aged 20–97 years who had undergone a clinical autopsy including a neuropathological examination. The cortical raspberry density had either been quantified as part of a previous study or was examined de novo in a uniform manner on haematoxylin- and eosin-stained tissue sections from the frontal lobe. The medical records and autopsy reports were assessed regarding neurodegeneration, cerebral infarcts, cerebral atherosclerosis and small vessel disease, cardiac hypertrophy, nephrosclerosis, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. With the patients grouped according to 10-year age interval, non-parametric tests (the Kruskal–Wallis test, followed by pairwise testing with Bonferroni-corrected P values) and multiple linear regression models (not corrected for multiple tests) were performed.
Results: The average raspberry density increased with advancing age. The non-parametric tests demonstrated statistically significant differences in raspberry density when comparing the groups aged 60–99 years and 70–99 years to those aged 20–29 years (P < 0.012) and 30–59 years (P < 0.011), respectively. The multiple linear regression models demonstrated positive associations with age interval (P < 0.001), cerebral atherosclerosis (P = 0.024), cardiac hypertrophy (P = 0.021), hypertension subgrouped for organ damage (P = 0.006), and female sex (P = 0.004), and a tendency towards a negative association with Alzheimer’s disease neuropathologic change (P = 0.048).
Conclusion: The raspberry density of the frontal cortex increases with advancing age, but our results also indicate associations with acquired pathologies. Awareness of the biological and pathological context where raspberries occur can guide further research on their origin.
(Less)
- author
- Ek Olofsson, Henric
LU
; Österling Delshammar, Thea
and Englund, Elisabet
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2023-12
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Aging, Atherosclerosis, Brain ischemia, Cardiac hypertrophy, Cerebral angiogenesis, Cerebral neovascularization, Cerebrovascular disease, Hypertension, Small vessel disease
- in
- Acta Neuropathologica Communications
- volume
- 11
- article number
- 195
- publisher
- BioMed Central (BMC)
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:38087325
- scopus:85179344066
- ISSN
- 2051-5960
- DOI
- 10.1186/s40478-023-01700-z
- project
- A new type of microvascular formation in the cerebral cortex – is there a link to cerebral hypoperfusion?
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- Funding Information: Open access funding provided by Lund University. The current study was supported by Lund University (Grant No. 2023), Region Skane (Grant No. 2023), and the Trolle–Wachtmeister Foundation for Medical Research (Grant No. 2023). Publisher Copyright: © 2023, The Author(s).
- id
- 77ffd2fe-2c8c-4836-8518-39f79066d39a
- date added to LUP
- 2023-12-27 21:27:10
- date last changed
- 2024-04-26 03:59:53
@article{77ffd2fe-2c8c-4836-8518-39f79066d39a,
abstract = {{<p>Introduction: Raspberries are cerebral microvascular formations of unknown origin, defined as three or more transversally sectioned vascular lumina surrounded by a common perivascular space. We have previously demonstrated an increased raspberry density in the cortex of patients with vascular dementia and cerebral atherosclerosis, while studies by other authors on overlapping and synonymously defined vascular entities mainly associate them with advancing age. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between raspberries and age in a large study sample while including multiple potential confounding factors in the analysis.</p><p>Materials and methods: Our study sample consisted of 263 individuals aged 20–97 years who had undergone a clinical autopsy including a neuropathological examination. The cortical raspberry density had either been quantified as part of a previous study or was examined de novo in a uniform manner on haematoxylin- and eosin-stained tissue sections from the frontal lobe. The medical records and autopsy reports were assessed regarding neurodegeneration, cerebral infarcts, cerebral atherosclerosis and small vessel disease, cardiac hypertrophy, nephrosclerosis, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. With the patients grouped according to 10-year age interval, non-parametric tests (the Kruskal–Wallis test, followed by pairwise testing with Bonferroni-corrected P values) and multiple linear regression models (not corrected for multiple tests) were performed.</p><p>Results: The average raspberry density increased with advancing age. The non-parametric tests demonstrated statistically significant differences in raspberry density when comparing the groups aged 60–99 years and 70–99 years to those aged 20–29 years (P < 0.012) and 30–59 years (P < 0.011), respectively. The multiple linear regression models demonstrated positive associations with age interval (P < 0.001), cerebral atherosclerosis (P = 0.024), cardiac hypertrophy (P = 0.021), hypertension subgrouped for organ damage (P = 0.006), and female sex (P = 0.004), and a tendency towards a negative association with Alzheimer’s disease neuropathologic change (P = 0.048).</p><p>Conclusion: The raspberry density of the frontal cortex increases with advancing age, but our results also indicate associations with acquired pathologies. Awareness of the biological and pathological context where raspberries occur can guide further research on their origin.</p>}},
author = {{Ek Olofsson, Henric and Österling Delshammar, Thea and Englund, Elisabet}},
issn = {{2051-5960}},
keywords = {{Aging; Atherosclerosis; Brain ischemia; Cardiac hypertrophy; Cerebral angiogenesis; Cerebral neovascularization; Cerebrovascular disease; Hypertension; Small vessel disease}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{BioMed Central (BMC)}},
series = {{Acta Neuropathologica Communications}},
title = {{Cortical microvascular raspberries and ageing : an independent but not exclusive relationship}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40478-023-01700-z}},
doi = {{10.1186/s40478-023-01700-z}},
volume = {{11}},
year = {{2023}},
}