Pathoclisis

Last updated September 05, 2023

Pathoclisis (from -clisis meaning "predisposition" in Ancient Greek)^[1] is the theory that certain specialized parts of the brain are the first to be damaged in the case of disease, lack of oxygen, or malnutrition. The selective vulnerability of certain neurons can then lead to the expression of pathology.^[2] The APA dictionary of psychology defines pathoclisis as “sensitivity to particular toxins, or the tendency of particular toxins to target certain organs or systems of organ.”^[3]

Research

Cécile Vogt-Mugnier and her husband Oskar Vogt came up with the idea of pathoclisis through their research on insects and the human cerebral cortex.^[1] They defined it as the "genomically-determined excessive variability, reaching in intensity the degree of pathological change".

During their work in France and Germany, these prominent scientists of neurological research first experimented on animals, administering pharmalogical agents and using electricity to observe electrical and functional disturbances. After also experimenting with human brains, their findings presented a case that certain factors influence patterns of pathoclisis in different brain regions.^[4]

Different types of pathoclisis

Upon their discovery of pathoclisis, Cécile Vogt-Mugnier and her husband Oskar Vogt decided to categorize and classify the disease into many subcategories. One of the main separations was between Soma-pathoclisis and Gene-pathoclisis. “Soma” refers to how vulnerable a section of the brain can be when it comes in contact with a damaging substance or situation, such as Carbon Monoxide, or a lack of oxygen. “Gene” has to do with hereditary genes deteriorating due to an outside circumstance or near-death experience. Upon further research, certain mental disorders were traceable to this affect, schizophrenia being one example.^[5]

The other division was between General-pathoclisis and Special-pathoclisis. “General” referred to the conclusion that one specific part of the brain could be affected by a multitude of factors including poisonings, malnutrition, paralysis, lack of nutrients, and even certain types of dementia. On the other hand, “Special,” referred to there being a specific connection between the location of deterioration and the factor that caused it. These separate categories were used during the continuation of their pathoclisis research.^[5]

Near-death experiences

When close to death, certain parts of the brain may experience a lack of oxygen and through pathoclisis, specific structures of the brain are affected. These structures contribute to the creation of commonly experienced phenomena when near death.^[4]

Experience	Neurological Symptoms	Involved Brain Structures
Sounds	Acouasms, tinnitus cerebri (audio hallucinations)	Temporal Lobe
tunnels	Visual field narrows	Occipital lobe
Light and patterns	Phosphenes (visual illusion) photopsia (visions of light flashes)	Occipital lobe
“Life flash before eyes”	Visual hallucinations	Occipital lobe
Seeing own body	Autoscopy (out of body experience)	Temporal lobe
Sense of time		Temporal lobe
Feelings of love and warmth		Limbic system
Seeing loved ones	Visual hallucinations	Occipital Lobe

Some near death experiences such as seeing light or having out of body experiences have been reported more commonly. This supports the idea of pathoclisis, an effect of being near death that is shared among humans in which some brain structures are more susceptible to malfunction and are affected first with lack of oxygen.^[4]

Mechanism

More so than any other organ, the brain is remarkably heterogeneous in its cellular composition.^[2] The wide variety of cell types might thus be the basis for selective vulnerability.

The brain has many structures and pathoclisis implies the tendency for some of these regions to be more vulnerable and become affected first when encountering a lack of oxygen. To comprehend the concept of pathoclisis, it is necessary to understand the temporal sequence that leads to the death of an organ. This sequence is characterized chronologically by; Disturbance of function, small amount of cell loss, large amount cell loss and therefore damage to part of an organ, damage to entirety of an organ, full loss of organ function, organ death.^[4]

Regions of the brain that have been found to be most vulnerable to a lack of oxygen or glucose include the cerebral and cerebellar cortex, thalamus, structures in the striatum, Ammon's horn, lower olivary body of the medulla oblongata, and in the occipital lobe.^[4]

The gray matter of the cerebral cortex is the first to begin shrinking as aging progresses. Based on MRI studies however, researchers are beginning to realize that this brain aging may not be as random as they had assumed. Seemingly healthy, older individuals are showing signs of cerebral atrophy, which leads to the conclusion that brain deterioration is specific and dependent. The prefrontal, parietal, and occipital lobes tend to be the first to begin the decline in health. Sections of the brain that deal with higher-order concepts tend to age in line with the body more so than other areas.^[6]

A possible explanation for pathoclisis is distribution of neurotransmitters affects vulnerability. Another hypothesis is that the circulation of certain regions influences their susceptibility to disturbance and damage.^[4]

Role in neurodegenerative diseases

Subcortical structures, such as basal ganglia and the brain stem, are particularly vulnerable to ATP depletion, explaining why parkinsonism and depressive symptoms are among the earliest symptoms of vascular dementia, hypoxia, carbon monoxide poisoning, chronic intoxication by mitochondrial complex I inhibitors (such as rotenone and annonaceous acetogenins) and chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

Especially, progressive supranuclear palsy and corticobasal degeneration seems to be illnesses resulting from mitochondrial complex I deficiency.^[7]

Additionally, hypoxia during childhood seems to be a factor of schizophrenia, due to corticobasal and cerebellar damages to the brain.

Today, the theory of pathoclisis is used in alzheimer's research, as both relate to the degeneration of the brain and in alzheimer's certain parts of the brain are affected before others, while some are left unaffected.^[4] It has also been explored in sporadic parkinson's disease, as patients with the disease have shown to have the molecular basis for pathoclisis.^[8]

Gender Role

Pathoclisis correlates with the aging process. According to many studies which measure the BMAI, brain matter area index, gender plays a role in how quickly this deterioration process takes place or if it takes place at all. The frontal and temporal lobe atrophy at a faster rate in men than in women. Because of this, the pathoclisis effects of these areas are seen less often in women. The rate of atrophy in the parietal lobe and the cerebellum are the same on average between men and women. However, women are less susceptible to atrophy in these areas. The atrophy of the parietal lobe and cerebellum appears more frequently in older men rather than women. Overall, men are more effected by pathoclisis than women.^[9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cerebral cortex</span> Outer layer of the cerebrum of the mammalian brain

The cerebral cortex, also known as the cerebral mantle, is the outer layer of neural tissue of the cerebrum of the brain in humans and other mammals. The cerebral cortex mostly consists of the six-layered neocortex, with just 10% consisting of allocortex. It is separated into two cortices, by the longitudinal fissure that divides the cerebrum into the left and right cerebral hemispheres. The two hemispheres are joined beneath the cortex by the corpus callosum. The cerebral cortex is the largest site of neural integration in the central nervous system. It plays a key role in attention, perception, awareness, thought, memory, language, and consciousness. The cerebral cortex is part of the brain responsible for cognition.

Porencephaly is an extremely rare cephalic disorder involving encephalomalacia. It is a neurological disorder of the central nervous system characterized by cysts or cavities within the cerebral hemisphere. Porencephaly was termed by Heschl in 1859 to describe a cavity in the human brain. Derived from Greek roots, the word porencephaly means 'holes in the brain'. The cysts and cavities are more likely to be the result of destructive (encephaloclastic) cause, but can also be from abnormal development (malformative), direct damage, inflammation, or hemorrhage. The cysts and cavities cause a wide range of physiological, physical, and neurological symptoms. Depending on the patient, this disorder may cause only minor neurological problems, without any disruption of intelligence, while others may be severely disabled or die before the second decade of their lives. However, this disorder is far more common within infants, and porencephaly can occur both before or after birth.

The temporal lobe is one of the four major lobes of the cerebral cortex in the brain of mammals. The temporal lobe is located beneath the lateral fissure on both cerebral hemispheres of the mammalian brain.

The frontal lobe is the largest of the four major lobes of the brain in mammals, and is located at the front of each cerebral hemisphere. It is parted from the parietal lobe by a groove between tissues called the central sulcus and from the temporal lobe by a deeper groove called the lateral sulcus. The most anterior rounded part of the frontal lobe is known as the frontal pole, one of the three poles of the cerebrum.

The cerebrum, telencephalon or endbrain is the largest part of the brain containing the cerebral cortex, as well as several subcortical structures, including the hippocampus, basal ganglia, and olfactory bulb. In the human brain, the cerebrum is the uppermost region of the central nervous system. The cerebrum develops prenatally from the forebrain (prosencephalon). In mammals, the dorsal telencephalon, or pallium, develops into the cerebral cortex, and the ventral telencephalon, or subpallium, becomes the basal ganglia. The cerebrum is also divided into approximately symmetric left and right cerebral hemispheres.

The human brain is the central organ of the human nervous system, and with the spinal cord makes up the central nervous system. The brain consists of the cerebrum, the brainstem and the cerebellum. It controls most of the activities of the body, processing, integrating, and coordinating the information it receives from the sense organs, and making decisions as to the instructions sent to the rest of the body. The brain is contained in, and protected by, the skull bones of the head.

Astereognosis is the inability to identify an object by active touch of the hands without other sensory input, such as visual or sensory information. An individual with astereognosis is unable to identify objects by handling them, despite intact elementary tactile, proprioceptive, and thermal sensation. With the absence of vision, an individual with astereognosis is unable to identify what is placed in their hand based on cues such as texture, size, spatial properties, and temperature. As opposed to agnosia, when the object is observed visually, one should be able to successfully identify the object.

Cerebral atrophy is a common feature of many of the diseases that affect the brain. Atrophy of any tissue means a decrement in the size of the cell, which can be due to progressive loss of cytoplasmic proteins. In brain tissue, atrophy describes a loss of neurons and the connections between them. Brain atrophy can be classified into two main categories: generalized and focal atrophy. Generalized atrophy occurs across the entire brain whereas focal atrophy affects cells in a specific location. If the cerebral hemispheres are affected, conscious thought and voluntary processes may be impaired.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lobes of the brain</span> Parts of the cerebrum

The lobes of the brain are the major identifiable zones of the cerebral cortex, and they comprise the surface of each hemisphere of the cerebrum. The two hemispheres are roughly symmetrical in structure, and are connected by the corpus callosum. They traditionally have been divided into four lobes, but are today considered as having six lobes each. The lobes are large areas that are anatomically distinguishable, and are also functionally distinct to some degree. Each lobe of the brain has numerous ridges, or gyri, and furrows, the sulci that constitute further subzones of the cortex. The expression "lobes of the brain" usually refers only to those of the cerebrum, not to the distinct areas of the cerebellum.

Corticobasal degeneration (CBD) is a rare neurodegenerative disease involving the cerebral cortex and the basal ganglia. CBD symptoms typically begin in people from 50 to 70 years of age, and the average disease duration is six years. It is characterized by marked disorders in movement and cognition, and is classified as one of the Parkinson plus syndromes. Diagnosis is difficult, as symptoms are often similar to those of other disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and dementia with Lewy bodies, and a definitive diagnosis of CBD can only be made upon neuropathologic examination.

Memory disorders are the result of damage to neuroanatomical structures that hinders the storage, retention and recollection of memories. Memory disorders can be progressive, including Alzheimer's disease, or they can be immediate including disorders resulting from head injury.

The inferior temporal gyrus is one of three gyri of the temporal lobe and is located below the middle temporal gyrus, connected behind with the inferior occipital gyrus; it also extends around the infero-lateral border on to the inferior surface of the temporal lobe, where it is limited by the inferior sulcus. This region is one of the higher levels of the ventral stream of visual processing, associated with the representation of objects, places, faces, and colors. It may also be involved in face perception, and in the recognition of numbers and words.

Utilization behavior (UB) is a type of neurobehavioral phenomena that involves someone grabbing objects in view and starting the 'appropriate' behavior associated with it at an 'inappropriate' time. Utilization behavior people have difficulty resisting the impulse to operate or manipulate objects which are in their visual field and within reach. Characteristics of UB include unintentional, unconscious actions triggered by the immediate environment. The unpreventable excessive behavior has been linked to lesions in the frontal lobe. UB has also been referred to as "bilateral magnetic apraxia" and "hypermetamorphosis".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cécile Vogt-Mugnier</span> French neurologist

Cécile Vogt-Mugnier was a French neurologist from Haute-Savoie. She and her husband Oskar Vogt are known for their extensive cytoarchetectonic studies on the brain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Posterior cortical atrophy</span> Medical condition

Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA), also called Benson's syndrome, is a rare form of dementia which is considered a visual variant or an atypical variant of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The disease causes atrophy of the posterior part of the cerebral cortex, resulting in the progressive disruption of complex visual processing. PCA was first described by D. Frank Benson in 1988.

The neuroanatomy of memory encompasses a wide variety of anatomical structures in the brain.

Subcortical dementias includes those diseases which predominantly affects the basal ganglia along with features of cognitive decline.

The temporal dynamics of music and language describes how the brain coordinates its different regions to process musical and vocal sounds. Both music and language feature rhythmic and melodic structure. Both employ a finite set of basic elements that are combined in ordered ways to create complete musical or lingual ideas.

Ulegyria is a diagnosis used to describe a specific type of cortical scarring in the deep regions of the sulcus that leads to distortion of the gyri. Ulegyria is identified by its characteristic "mushroom-shaped" gyri, in which scarring causes shrinkage and atrophy in the deep sulcal regions while the surface gyri are spared. This condition is most often caused by hypoxic-ischemic brain injury in the perinatal period. The effects of ulegyria can range in severity, although it is most commonly associated with cerebral palsy, mental retardation and epilepsy. N.C. Bresler was the first to view ulegyria in 1899 and described this abnormal morphology in the brain as “mushroom-gyri." Although ulegyria was first identified in 1899, there is still limited information known or reported about the condition.

Alcohol-related brain damage alters both the structure and function of the brain as a result of the direct neurotoxic effects of alcohol intoxication or acute alcohol withdrawal. Increased alcohol intake is associated with damage to brain regions including the frontal lobe, limbic system, and cerebellum, with widespread cerebral atrophy, or brain shrinkage caused by neuron degeneration. This damage can be seen on neuroimaging scans.

References

1 2 T. Kuroiwa; A. Baethmann; Z. Czernicki (1 January 2004). Brain Edema XII: Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium : Hakone, Japan, November 10-13, 2002. Springer. p. 30. ISBN 978-3-211-00919-2 . Retrieved 24 December 2012.
1 2 CIBA Foundation Symposium (30 April 2008). Novel Infectious Agents and the Central Nervous System. John Wiley & Sons. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-470-51362-0 . Retrieved 24 December 2012.
↑ "APA Dictionary of Psychology". dictionary.apa.org. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Engmann, B. (2014). Near-death experiences: Heavenly insight or human illusion? Springer International Publishing/Springer Nature. doi : 10.1007/978-3-319-03728-8
1 2 Klatzo, I. (2002). Cécile and Oskar Vogt: The Visionaries of Modern Neuroscience (1st ed.). New York: Springer-Verlag Wien. p. 22. ISBN 978-3-7091-6141-8.
↑ Raz, Naftali; Torres, Ivan J.; Spencer, Wesley D.; Acker, James D. (1993). "Pathoclysis in aging human cerebral cortex: Evidence from in vivo MRI morphometry" (PDF). Psychobiology. 2 (21): 151. doi:10.3758/BF03332042. S2CID 142701602.
↑ "Atypical parkinsonism in Guadeloupe: a common risk factor for two closely related phenotypes?".
↑ Duke, D.C., Moran, L.B., Pearce, R.K.B. et al. The medial and lateral substantia nigra in Parkinson’s disease: mRNA profiles associated with higher brain tissue vulnerability. Neurogenetics 8, 83–94 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10048-006-0077-6
↑ Xu, Jiang; Kobayashi, Shotai; Yamaguchi, Shuhei; Iijima, Ken-ichi; Okada, Kazunori; Yamashita, Kazuya (January 2000). "Gender Effects on Age-Related Changes in Brain Structure". American Journal of Neuroradiology. 21 (1): 112–118. ISSN 0195-6108. PMC 7976349 . PMID 10669234.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[KuroiwaBaethmann2004-1] 1 2 T. Kuroiwa; A. Baethmann; Z. Czernicki (1 January 2004). Brain Edema XII: Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium : Hakone, Japan, November 10-13, 2002. Springer. p. 30. ISBN 978-3-211-00919-2 . Retrieved 24 December 2012.

[Symposium2008-2] 1 2 CIBA Foundation Symposium (30 April 2008). Novel Infectious Agents and the Central Nervous System. John Wiley & Sons. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-470-51362-0 . Retrieved 24 December 2012.

[3] "APA Dictionary of Psychology". dictionary.apa.org. Retrieved 2 December 2022.

[:0-4] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Engmann, B. (2014). Near-death experiences: Heavenly insight or human illusion? Springer International Publishing/Springer Nature. doi : 10.1007/978-3-319-03728-8

[:1-5] 1 2 Klatzo, I. (2002). Cécile and Oskar Vogt: The Visionaries of Modern Neuroscience (1st ed.). New York: Springer-Verlag Wien. p. 22. ISBN 978-3-7091-6141-8.

[6] Raz, Naftali; Torres, Ivan J.; Spencer, Wesley D.; Acker, James D. (1993). "Pathoclysis in aging human cerebral cortex: Evidence from in vivo MRI morphometry" (PDF). Psychobiology. 2 (21): 151. doi:10.3758/BF03332042. S2CID 142701602.

[7] "Atypical parkinsonism in Guadeloupe: a common risk factor for two closely related phenotypes?".

[8] Duke, D.C., Moran, L.B., Pearce, R.K.B. et al. The medial and lateral substantia nigra in Parkinson’s disease: mRNA profiles associated with higher brain tissue vulnerability. Neurogenetics 8, 83–94 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10048-006-0077-6

[9] Xu, Jiang; Kobayashi, Shotai; Yamaguchi, Shuhei; Iijima, Ken-ichi; Okada, Kazunori; Yamashita, Kazuya (January 2000). "Gender Effects on Age-Related Changes in Brain Structure". American Journal of Neuroradiology. 21 (1): 112–118. ISSN 0195-6108. PMC 7976349 . PMID 10669234.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]