Synaptic proteins and choline acetyltransferase loss in visual cortex in dementia with Lewy bodies.

Functional neuroimaging studies have consistently reported abnormalities in the visual cortex in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), but their neuropathologic substrates are poorly understood. We analyzed synaptic proteins and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) in the primary (BA17) and association (BAs18/19) visual cortex in DLB and similar aged control and Alzheimer disease (AD) subjects. We found lower levels of synaptophysin, syntaxin, SNAP-25, and γ-synuclein in DLB subjects versus both aged control (68%-78% and 27%-72% for BA17 and BAs18/19, respectively) and AD cases (54%-67% and 10%-56% for BA17 and BAs18/19, respectively).