Skip to main content
Article
Immunolocalization of Influenza A Virus and Markers of Inflammation in the Human Parkinson’s Disease Brain
PLOS ONE
  • Troy T. Rohn, Boise State University
  • Lindsey W. Catlin, Boise State University
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
5-31-2011
DOI
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0020495
Disciplines
Abstract

Although much is known regarding the molecular mechanisms leading to neuronal cell loss in Parkinson’s disease (PD), the initiating event has not been identified. Prevailing theories including a chemical insult or infectious agent have been postulated as possible triggers, leading to neuroinflammation. We present immunohistochemical data indicating the presence of influenza A virus within the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) from postmortem PD brain sections. Influenza A virus labeling was identified within neuromelanin granules as well as on tissue macrophages in the SNpc. Further supporting a role for neuroinflammation in PD was the identification of T-lymphocytes that colocalized with an antibody to caspase-cleaved Beclin-1 within the SNpc. The presence of influenza A virus together with macrophages and Tlymphocytes may contribute to the neuroinflammation associated with this disease.

Copyright Statement

This document was originally published by PLOS ONE (Public Library of Science) in PLOS ONE. This work is provided under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 license. Details regarding the use of this work can be found at: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0020495

Citation Information
Troy T. Rohn and Lindsey W. Catlin. "Immunolocalization of Influenza A Virus and Markers of Inflammation in the Human Parkinson’s Disease Brain" PLOS ONE (2011)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/troy_rohn/21/