AXONAL AND DORSAL ROOT GANGLION CELL CHANGES IN EXPERIMENTAL ALLERGIC NEURITIS

Abstract

King R.H.M., Thomas P.K. & Pollard J.D. (1977) Neuropathology and Applied Neurobiology 3, 471486Axonal and dorsal root ganglion cell changes in experimental allergic neuritisObservations have been made on experimental allergic neuritis in guinea pigs induced by the inoculation of rabbit sciatic nerve combined with Freund's adjuvant. Axonal lesions were observed most often in the later stages of the acute disease and in animals with a chronic relapsing course. They consisted of axonal interruption and regeneration, and ‘reactive’ axonal changes in demyelinated and remyelinated fibres, and in fibres of normal appearance that may have possessed lesions at some other point along their course. Abnormalities were not detected in anterior horn cells. Loss of dorsal root ganglion cells was rare, but invasion of the cells by lymphocytes which were present within large intracellular vacuoles, was at times conspicuous. The axonal and dorsal root ganglion cell changes may represent a ‘bystander’ effect in a cell‐mediated delayed hypersensitivity reaction.