Summary
Based on recent findings described in accompanying reports as well as on relevant observations in the literature we hypothesize that: (1) the fundamental elements in the mechanism of the formation of “dark” (argyrophilic) neurons are independent of the causative conditions including post-mortem or in vivo mechanical injuries and various in vivo pathometabolic processes such as blood recirculation following ischemia; (2) the causative conditions, each in its own mechanical or metabolic way, induce the same morphopathological damage at one point only within each affected neuron; (3) this damage spreads throughout the respective somato-dendritic or axonal domain and entails type III argyrophilia; (4) the intraneuronal spread of the morphopathological damage consumes mechanical energy stored by the neurofilaments in the form of a metastable inner structure, and (5) is propagated by a process working, in certain structural and energetical respects, on the domino principles; and (6) the primary neuronal damage caused in the above manner might be secondarily modified in different directions by different postcausation conditions.
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Gallyas, F., Zoltay, G. & Dames, W. Formation of “dark” (argyrophilic) neurons of various origin proceeds with a common mechanism of biophysical nature (a novel hypothesis). Acta Neuropathol 83, 504–509 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00310027
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00310027