Absence of aluminium in Alzheimer's disease brain tissue: electron microprobe and ion microprobe studies

Brain tissue from the frontal cortex and hippocampal formation, taken at autopsy or biopsy from 7 patients with Alzheimer's disease, was studied by two methods of microanalysis. One case of Down's syndrome was also studied. Electron probe microanalysis of the frontal cortex and Ammon's horn of the hippocampus showed no aluminium in the various cell organelles, especially in the lysosomes, although some aluminium was found in a few contaminating dusts. Ion microscopy, a method of extremely high sensitivity, also showed the absence of an aluminium signal.