Figure 2. Differences in Neurofibrillary Tangle (NFT) and Neuronal Density in the Nucleus Basalis of Meynert (nbM) Among Alzheimer Disease (AD) Subtypes.

Data are displayed as jitter plots overlaying box plots of the 25th to 75th percentile, with the middle horizontal line representing the median. Nondemented normal controls are displayed for reference. Within each AD subtype, individuals younger than 65 years of age presenting with cognitive problems are displayed on the left and individuals 65 years or older are displayed on the right (lighter color). A, The NFT density in the nbM was measured using thioflavin S fluorescence microscopy. HpSp AD cases have the greatest accumulation of NFTs compared with typical AD, which is greater than limbic predominant (limbic) AD. B, Neuronal density was measured using a custom-designed digital pathology macro on hematoxylin-eosin–stained sections of the nbM. Hippocampal sparing (HpSp) AD has fewer remaining neurons compared with typical AD, which has fewer compared with limbic predominant AD. Pairwise comparisons were performed using Mann-Whitney rank sum test.