Research
Interests
The primary goal
of the quantitative neuroanatomy laboratory is to
study, in human postmortem brain, pathological
changes in the cortical cytoarchitecture in
psychiatric and neurological disorders. The
prefrontal cortex is our major region of
interest. The laboratory uses 3-dimensional cell
counting methods and a number of
immunohistochemical techniques to assess the
changes in cellular markers of neurons and glial
cells associated with depression and
schizophrenia. We are also interested in
co-morbidity of alcohol dependence and depression
and of cardiovascular disorders and geriatric
depression. Another task of the laboratory is to
re-map the cortical areas of the normal human
frontal lobe by using quantitative
cytoarchitectonic criteria. The goal of this line
of research is to recognize with optimal
precision the location and extent of specific
cortical areas and correlate their postmortem
morphology with in vivo structural and functional
neuroimaging.
High-power photomicrograph of glial fibrillary
acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactive astrocytes
in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex from
human postmortem brains. Note that the
depressed subject has fewer astrocytes which
are less bushy and more lightly stained as
compared to the non-psychiatric control
subject.
Selected Publications
Rajkowska,
G.
and Kosmal, A.:
Intrinsic connections and cytoarchitectonic data
of the frontal association cortex in the dog.
Acta Neurobiol. Exp., 48: 169-192,
1988.
Graham, G.D.,
Petroff,
O.A.C.,
Blamire,
A.M., Rajkowska,
G.,
Goldman-Rakic, P.S. and
Prichard, J.W.: Proton
magnetic resonance spectroscopy in
Creutzfeld-Jakob disease. Neurology,
43:2065-2068, 1993.
Rajkowska, G., Niewiadomska, G. and
Kosmal,
A.: Regional and laminar
variations in acetylcholinesterase (ACHE)
activity within the prefrontal cortex of the dog.
J. Chemical Neuroanatomy, 6: 117-130,
1993.
Rajkowska, G. and Goldman-Rakic, P.S.:
Cytoarchitectonic definition of prefrontal areas
in the normal human cortex: II. Variability in
locations of areas 9 and 46. Cerebral Cortex
V, (4): 323-337, 1995.
Rajkowska, G. and Goldman-Rakic, P.S.:
Cytoarchitectonic definition of prefrontal areas
in the normal human cortex: I. Quantitative
criteria for distinguishing areas 9 and 46.
Cerebral Cortex V, (4): 307-322, 1995.
Selemon, L.D.,
Rajkowska,
G. and
Goldman-Rakic, P.S.: Abnormally
high neuronal density in the schizophrenic
cortex: a morphometric analysis of prefrontal
area 9 and occipital area 17. Arch. General
Psychiatry, 52: 805-818, 1995.
Rajkowska, G.,
Selemon,
L.D. and
Goldman-Rakic, P.S.: Neuronal and
glial somal size in the prefrontal cortex : a
postmortem study of schizophrenia and
Huntington's disease. Arch. General
Psychiatry, 55:215-224, 1998.
Selemon,
L.D., Rajkowska, G.
and Goldman-Rakic,
P.S.: Elevated
neuronal density in prefrontal area 46 in brains
from schizophrenic patients: Application of a
3-Dimensional, stereologic counting method. J.
Comp. Neurology, 392:402-412, 1998.
Uylings, H.B.M., Zilles, K. and Rajkowska,
G.: Optimal staining methods for cortical
areal delineation and neuron counts in human
brains. NeuroImage, 9: 439-445, 1999.
Klimek, V., Rajkowska, G., Luker, S.N.,
Dilley, G., Meltzer, H.Y., Overholser, J.C.,
Stockmeier, C.A., and Ordway, G.A.: Brain
noradrenergic receptors in major depression and
schizophrenia. Neuropsychopharmacology,
21: 70-81, 1999.
Rajkowska, G., Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J., Wei, J.,
Pittman, S.D., Dilley, G., Overholser, J.,
Meltzer, H., and Stockmeier, C.A.: Morphometric
evidence for neuronal and glial prefrontal cell
pathology in major depression, Biological
Psychiatry, 45:1085-1098, 1999.
Chen, G., Rajkowska, G., Seraji-Bozorgzad,
N., Du, F,.and Manji, H.K.: Enhancement of
hippocampal neurogenesis by lithium. J.
Neurochem., 75: 1729-1734, 2000.
Rajkowska, G.: Postmortem studies in mood
disorders indicate altered numbers of neurons and
glial cells. Biological Psychiatry 48:
766-777, 2000.
,
Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J., Baucom, Ch., Dilley, G.,
Overholser, J., Meltzer, H., Stockmeier, C.A. and
Rajkowska, G.: GFAP immunoreactivity in
the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex separates
young from old adults with major depressive
disorder. Biological Psychiatry, 48:
860-872, 2000.
Manji, H.K., Moore, G.J., Rajkowska, G.,
Chen, G.: Neuroplasticity and cellular resilience
in mood disorders. Millennium Article.
Molecular Psychiatry, 5: 578-593,
2000.
Rajkowska, G.: Histopathology of the
prefrontal cortex in depression: what does it
tell us about dysfunctional monoaminergic
circuits. Progress in Brain Research,
126:397-412, 2000.
Uylings, H.B.M., Sanz Arigita,
E., de Vos, K.,
Pool, C.W.,
Schleicher, A.,
Rajkowska,
G. and Zilles, K.: The
importance of a human (3) Three-dimension
database and atlas for studies of prefrontal and
thalamic functions. Progress in Brain
Research, 126: 357-368, 2000.
Rajkowska, G.,
Halaris,
A. and
Selemon, L.D.: Reductions in
neuronal and glial density characterize the
dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in bipolar
disorder. Biological Psychiatry,
49:741-752, 2001.
Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J. and Rajkowska, G.:
Morphological brain changes in depression: can
antidepressants reverse them? Journal of CNS
Drugs, 16: 361-372, 2002.
Stockmeier, C.A., Shi, X., Konick, L.,
Overholser, J.C., Jurjus, G., Meltzer, H.Y.,
Friedman, L., Blier, P., and Rajkowska,
G.: Neurokinin-1 receptors are decreased in
major depressive disorder. Neuroreport,
13:1217-1220, 2002.
Rajkowska, G., Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J.,
Makkos, Z., Meltzer, H.Y., , Overholser, J.C.,
Stockmeier, C.A.: Layer-specific astroglia
pathology in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research,
57: 127-138, 2002.
Rajkowska, G.: Cell pathology in mood
disorders. Seminars in Clinical
Neuropsychiatry, 7:1-12, 2002.
Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J., Wei, J., Overholser, J.,
Jurjus, G., Stockmeier, C.A. and Rajkowska,
G.: Glia pathology in the prefrontal cortex
in alcohol dependence with and without depressive
symptoms. Biological Psychiatry,
52:1121-1133, 2002.
Miguel-Hidalgo, J.J and Rajkowska, G.:
Comparison of prefrontal cell pathology between
depression and alcohol dependence. J.
Psychiatric Research, 37:411-420, 2003.
Selemon, L. and Rajkowska, G.: Cellular
pathology in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
distinguishes schizophrenia from bipolar
disorder. Current Molecular Medicine, 3:
427-436, 2003.
Rajkowska, G.: Depression: What we can
learn from postmortem studies.
Neuroscientist, 9:273-284, 2003.
Rajkowska G., Miguel-Hidalgo J.J., Dubey P.,
Stockmeier C.A. and Krishnan R.R.. Prominent
reduction in pyramidal neurons density in the
orbitofrontal cortex of elderly depressed patients.
Biological Psychiatry, 58: 297-306, 2005.
Book Chapters
1. Druga, R., Syka,
J. and Rajkowska,
G.,
Localization of cortical neurons projecting to
the inferior colliculus in the rat and guinea
pig. In Auditory Pathway: Structure and
Function. Syka, J.,
Masterton, R.B. (eds.), Plenum
Press, New York: 293-298, 1998.
2. Rajkowska, G.,
Quantitative cytoarchitectonic findings in
post-mortem brain tissue from mood disorders
patients. In Agam, G.,
Belmaker, R.H. and
Everall, I. (eds). The
Post-Mortem Brain in Psychiatric Research.
Kluwer Academic Publisher, pages: 49-73,
2002.
3. D. Cotter, C. Pariante and
Rajkowska, G., Glial
pathology in major psychiatric disorders.
In Agam, G.,
Belmaker, R.H. and
Everall,
I. (eds).
The Post-Mortem
Brain in Psychiatric Research.
Kluwer Academic Publisher, pages:
291-324, 2002.
4. Rajkowska, G., Anatomical Pathology.
In D. Stein, A. Schatzberg and D. Kupfer (eds).
Textbook of Mood Disorders. American Psychiatric
Publishing, Inc, pages: 179-195, 2005.
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