Neuropathological Markers in Late-Life Depression
- DOI:
- 10.1093/med/9780199796816.003.0036
Neuroimaging and clinical studies of late-life depression point to neuropathological changes in the prefrontal cortex of subjects with late-life mood disorders. Research on the cellular basis of that neuropathology reveals an age-related increase in neuronal vulnerability in the orbitofrontal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, but less so in subcortical regions. Unlike depression earlier in life, late-life depression likely involves activation in the expression of glial markers and possibly enhancement of glial proliferation. The relationship of glial and neuronal changes to neuroimmune disturbances that occur both in depression and during normal aging remains to be fully characterized, although it may be related to inflammatory disruption in the deep white matter of the prefrontal cortex.
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