Cerebral cation shifts and amino acids in Huntington's disease
J. B. Gramsbergen, L. Veenma-Van der Duin, K. Venema and J. Korf
The cations, calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium, putative amino acid
transmitters, and total protein contents were assessed in the frontal
cortex, putamen, and substantia nigra of Huntington's disease (HD) patients
and age-matched nonneurologic control subjects. In the HD frontal cortex
and HD substantia nigra, only small increases in sodium levels and
decreases in potassium levels were observed, but in the HD putamen there
were major cation shifts, suggesting a twofold increase of the
extracellular space. In all three brain areas that were investigated,
potassium was positively correlated with gamma-aminobutyric acid and in the
putamen sodium was negatively correlated with the amino acid. These
correlations suggest loss of gamma-aminobutyric acidergic neurons or nerve
terminals in these areas. The elevation of sodium in the HD basal ganglia
may be visualized in vivo by nuclear magnetic resonance of sodium.