PMC:2493521 / 46393-47342 JSONTXT

{"project":"2_test","denotations":[{"id":"18347928-3056461-20694347","span":{"begin":195,"end":199},"obj":"3056461"},{"id":"18347928-10092043-20694348","span":{"begin":206,"end":210},"obj":"10092043"},{"id":"18347928-15099023-20694349","span":{"begin":943,"end":947},"obj":"15099023"}],"text":"Serial sectioning of substantia nigra for unbiased stereologic morphometry\nAccurate counting of neurons within defined brain regions requires the methods of unbiased stereology (Gundersen et al. 1988; West 1999) and a complete sampling of the brain region of interest. For cases with clinical parkinsonism, as well as many control cases, we have serially sectioned the substantia nigra to allow unbiased estimates of neuron numbers. The entire left side of the substantia nigra is serially sectioned at 40 μm on a sliding freezing microtome, with all sections collected and stored appropriately. To date, 146 cases have been serially sectioned in this manner. The method is very time-consuming, however, and as an alternative, researchers should consider biochemical analysis of dopaminergic markers in the striatum as perhaps a more quantitative and sensitive indicator of the integrity of the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system (Beach et al. 2004)."}