Lewy bodies are not increased in progressive supranuclear palsy compared with normal controls

To determine the frequency of Lewy bodies (LB) in progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).

LB are characteristic of PD, but are also found in normal controls and in other neurodegenerative diseases, especially AD.

The authors evaluated the brains of 72 consecutive cases of pathologically confirmed PSP and 98 normal controls, ranging in age from 60 to 100 years, with immunohistochemistry for alpha-synuclein.

LB and Lewy neurites were found in 13 cases of PSP, with the most numerous LB and Lewy neurites in the basal forebrain and amygdala; most cases also had LB in the substantia nigra. The frequency of LB in the substantia nigra (12%) was comparable to the frequency of LB in controls (9%).

In contrast to increased frequency of LB in AD, there is no apparent interaction between LB and the tau pathology in PSP.