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Loss of nucleus basalis neurons containing trkA immunoreactivity in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease
Mufson EJ, Ma SY, Cochran EJ, Bennett DA, Beckett LA, Jaffar S, Saragovi HU, Kordower JH.. The Journal of comparative neurology, 2000-11-01
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Recent studies indicate that there is a marked reduction in trkA-containing nucleus basalis neurons in end-stage Alzheimer's disease (AD). We used unbiased stereological counting procedures to determine whether these changes extend to individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) without dementia from a cohort of people enrolled in the Religious Orders Study. Thirty people (average age 84.7 years) came to autopsy.
Key findings
- We used unbiased stereological counting procedures to determine whether these changes extend to individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) without dementia from a cohort of people enrolled in the Religious Orders Study.
- Thirty people (average age 84.7 years) came to autopsy.
- All individuals were cognitively tested within 12 months of death (average MMSE 24.2).
- Clinically, 9 had no cognitive impairment (NCI), 12 were categorized with MCI, and 9 had probable AD The average number of trkA-immunoreactive neurons in persons with NCI was 196, 632 +/- 12,093 (n = 9), for those with MCI it was 106,110 +/- 14,565, and for those with AD it was 86,978 +/- 12,141.
Why it matters
In brain tissue from 30 deceased people, those with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease had fewer nucleus basalis neurons containing trkA. This is a post-mortem finding about early brain changes and does not test any treatment, cure or prevention.
Study details
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Journal of comparative neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | The Journal of Comparative Neurology: journal h-index 431 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2000 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 216 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 7.7 citations a year over 28 year(s) since 2000 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 8.1× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 19 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 5 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Jeffrey H. Kordower: h-index 104 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | McGill University: institution h-index 1,373 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 11042589) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Mufson, E. J., Ma, S. Y., Cochran, E. J., Bennett, D. A., Beckett, L. A., Jaffar, S., et al. (2000). Loss of nucleus basalis neurons containing trkA immunoreactivity in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease. The Journal of comparative neurology. https://doi.org/10.1002/1096-9861(20001106)427:1<19::aid-cne2>3.0.co;2-a
Vancouver
Mufson EJ, Ma SY, Cochran EJ, Bennett DA, Beckett LA, Jaffar S, et al. Loss of nucleus basalis neurons containing trkA immunoreactivity in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease. The Journal of comparative neurology. 2000. doi:10.1002/1096-9861(20001106)427:1<19::aid-cne2>3.0.co;2-a. PMID: 11042589.
BibTeX
@article{mufson2000-11042589,
author = {Mufson, E. J. and Ma, S. Y. and Cochran, E. J. and Bennett, D. A. and Beckett, L. A. and Jaffar, S. and Saragovi, H. U. and Kordower, J. H.},
title = {{Loss of nucleus basalis neurons containing trkA immunoreactivity in individuals with mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {The Journal of comparative neurology},
year = {2000},
doi = {10.1002/1096-9861(20001106)427:1<19::aid-cne2>3.0.co;2-a},
pmid = {11042589},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/1096-9861(20001106)427:1<19::aid-cne2>3.0.co;2-a}
}
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