Age Related Changes in the Purkinje Cells in Human Cerebellar Cortex

The human cerebellum is associated with smooth control of movements and memory. As age advances deterioration is noticed in the cerebellum. The Purkinje cells act as the pivot in the neuronal circuitry of the cerebellum, which initiates and maintains complex, but smooth pursuit movements and it can be identified as one of the factors which cause the decline in movement and memory in humans as age progresses. In the present study a quantitative analysis of the Purkinje cells of the human cerebellum was done using light microscopy in seventy human cerebellums. The tissue collected from post mortem specimen was subject to routine histological processing and the slides studied under light microscopy to assess the diameter and linear density of Purkinje cells. The results of the study showed that the Purkinje cells are seen as a linear interface at the junction of the molecular and granular layer. The number of Purkinje cells was observed to be more at the crests than at the troughs of each folia. The Purkinje cells showed a statistically significant decrease in number after the third decade with ballooning observed around the sixth decade. The study aims to provide information regarding quantitative changes of the Purkinje cells of the human cerebellar cortex so as to enable clinical correlation with age related cerebellar dysfunction.