Fig. 1

Macroscopic views of the brain of an autopsy case with SCA34. (a and b) Superior and inferior views, respectively, of brain surfaces. P denotes posterior pole to show direction. Atrophy of cerebral cortices, especially in the medial temporal lobes, was noted (see also d). (c) Transverse sections of the brainstem, from the medulla oblongata to the midbrain. White arrows indicate severe atrophy in the pontine base. In addition, the ventral parts of the midbrain and medulla were more atrophied than the dorsal parts. Depigmentation of the substantia nigra was also noted (arrowheads). (d) Coronal section of the cerebrum showed largely preserved caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus. Arrowheads indicates moderately atrophied corpus callosum. Mild atrophy of the cerebral white matter was observed (arrow). (e) Horizontal sections of right cerebellar hemisphere and sagittal sections of left hemisphere. Arrowheads show atrophied white matter. Arrow indicates obscured hilum of dentate nucleus. (f) Inferior view of the brain shows marked atrophy of the basis pontis (arrowheads). Scale bar = 1 cm (a to f)