Age-related structural changes in the myenteric nervous plexus ganglion along the anterior wall of the proximal human duodenum--a morphometric analysis.
2013
Background/Aim. Aging is one of the most complex biological processes which
probably affect structure and function of the enteric nerve system. However,
there is not much available information on this topic, particularly in
humans. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of aging on
the structure of the myenteric ganglia in the anterior wall of the human
proximal duodenum. Methods. We examined the myenteric ganglia in the proximal
duodenal anterior wall specimens obtained from 30 cadaver persons aged from
20 to 84 years. Tissue samples were classified into three age groups: 20-44,
45-64 and 65-84 years. After standard histological preparation, specimens
were stained with HE, Cresyl Violet and AgNO3. Morphometric analysis of all
the specimens, using a multipurpose test system M42, was performed. The data
were subjected to the ttest. Results. The myenteric ganglia of very old
humans contains an empty space, i.e. the respective parts of ganglia show a
decreased number of neuron as compared to younger population. The average
number of neuron per cm2 of the duodenum in the youngest people (20-44 years)
was 69,370 ± 1,750.00, in the people aged 45-64 years 69,211 ± 1,573.33, and
in the oldest persons (65-84 years) 57,951 ± 1,291.52. The loss of neurons in
the oldest persons was 16.46%. The applied statistic test demonstrated a
significant difference between the observed groups (p < 0.0001). Conclusion.
Aging does not induce changes in size and surface of neurons in the ganglia,
but it decreases the number of neurons. The nerve structures in the elderly
are partly emptied of bodies of nerve cells (“empty ganglions”), which
indicates the existence of changed myenteric ganglia in the duodenum. These
changes could be related to the duodenum motility disorder associated with
aging.
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