Latest Publications
Nanoscale synchrotron x-ray analysis of intranuclear iron in melanised neurons of Parkinson鈥檚 substantia nigra
Jake Brooks, James Everett, Emily Hill, Kharmen Billimoria, Christopher M. Morris, Peter J. Sadler, Neil Telling & Joanna F. Collingwood
Neuromelanin-pigmented neurons of the substantia nigra are selectively lost during the progression of Parkinson鈥檚 disease. These neurons accumulate iron in the disease state, and iron-mediated neuron damage is implicated in cell death. Here, scanning transmission x-ray microscopy (STXM) is used to probe iron foci in relation to the surrounding ultrastructure in melanised neurons of human substantia nigra from a confirmed Parkinson鈥檚 case. The findings show that STXM is a powerful label-free tool for the in situ, nanoscale chemical characterisation of both organic and inorganic intracellular components. Future applications are likely to shed new light on incompletely understood biochemical mechanisms, such as metal dysregulation and morphological changes to cell nucleoli, that are important in understanding the pathogenesis of Parkinson鈥檚.