Neurochemical and Morphological Changes in the Microstructures of the Compact Part of the Substantia Nigra of the Human Brain in Aging and Parkinson’s Disease (Literature Review)

Abstract

In research on the pathogenetic patterns of Parkinson’s disease, it is important to adequately assess the mechanisms of age-related involution and morphological changes that form in the brain during this process. The clinical symptoms detected in Parkinson’s disease (rigidity, hypokinesia, tremor) indicate the involvement of nigrostriatal brain structures in the pathological process due to the death of dopamine neurons in the compact part of the substantia nigra. At the same time, a loss of these neurons, as well as a change in the number of neuroglia cells in the substantia nigra of the brain, are detected not only in Parkinson’s disease but also in physiological aging. This review presents and compares data on the morphological changes in the compact part of the substantia nigra of the human brain in normal aging and Parkinson’s disease.