Figure 1.

Types of cell death induced in different brain areas after stroke. In the brain area of deepest ischemia, virtually all cells die rapidly by necrosis, resulting in the infarct. In the ischemic penumbra surrounding the infarct, there is a delayed and selective loss of neurons. In brain areas distant from the infarct but neuronally connected to the infarct, there is a delayed loss of neurons, known as secondary neurodegeneration.