Contatti: cagla.aytas@phd.unipi.it
Supervisore tesi: Prof. Carlo Cantile
Titolo Progetto: Histopathological and histomorphometrical alterations of optic pathways in central nervous system diseases of domestic mammals.
Abstract: The brain is strictly connected to the sensory organs, especially the eyes, which transmit visual information to the occipital cortex. The eye, specifically the retina, is considered part of the brain because it is composed of neurons and originates from the neural tube. Within the retina, different neurons process light signals received through the eye’s structures, eventually transmitting these signals as electrical impulses via the optic nerve to the brain. Both the eye and the central nervous system (CNS) have protective barriers, and their limited regenerative capacities make them vulnerable to irreversible damage caused by inflammation, neoplastic lesions, malformative, or neurodegenerative diseases. Evidence suggests a strong relationship between eye and CNS pathologies, with ocular changes often preceding central symptoms. Clinically, this is demonstrated by the finding of absence of menace response in almost every intracranial lesion. Multiple factors, including oxidative stress, inflammation, genetic causes, and cellular signaling, contribute to degeneration in both CNS and retinal disorders.
Since little is known on the precise morphometry of the optic pathways (OP) in domestic animal species, the first objective of this project is to conduct a comparative morphometric analysis of the healthy structures of the optic pathway—including the retina, optic nerve, optic chiasm, optic tract, lateral geniculate nucleus, optic radiation, and occipital cortex—and to standardize the immunohistochemical and morphometric methods. Subsequently, the specific histological methods will be applied to malformative, inflammatory, neurodegenerative, and neoplastic disease of the OP to investigate on the relationship between primary OP diseases and the involvement of the other regions of the CNS, and vice versa.
Summarizing, the research project during the 3-year period is aimed at:
- Collect healthy and diseased samples of the eye, optic nerve, and brain from various domestic mammal species.
- Identify and select suitable immunohistochemical markers and morphometric parameters for analysis.
- Digitally scan tissue slides to facilitate detailed examination and comparison.
- Retrieve cases of primary OP diseases and CNS conditions involving the OP from the DSV Neuropathology Lab and gather new pathological cases from the Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH) and European College of Veterinary Neurology (ECVN) diplomates.
- Apply standardized morphometric and immunohistochemical methods to these samples.
- Perform statistical analysis, evaluate results, and discuss findings with a focus on comparative and translational implications.
- Compile and write the doctoral dissertation based on the project’s findings.
This research will enhance our understanding of OP roles in CNS diseases in domestic mammals, offering significant insights for veterinary and potentially human medicine.
Scopus: 58135379100
Orcid: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-7986-7258
Pubblicazioni:
1- Fonti N, Parisi F, Aytaş Ç, Degl’Innocenti S, Cantile C. Neuropathology of Central and Peripheral Nervous System Lymphoma in Dogs and Cats: A Study of 92 Cases and Review of the Literature. Animals (Basel). 2023 Feb 27;13(5):862.
2- Bocci C, Sgorbini M, Panzani D, Moroni R, Nocera I, Aytaş Ç, Cantile C, Fanelli D. Impact of Managing Presumptive Fetal Membrane Hydrops in a Mare on Fetal Livability. American Journal of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, 2023, 18, 131-138. 10.3844/ajavsp.2023.131.138.
3- Aytaş Ç, Gilardini R, Beghelli A, Barili PA, Ori M, Cantile C. Spinal Cord Medulloepithelioma in a Cat. Veterinary Sciences. 2024; 11(4):177. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci11040177
Poster a congresso:
Unusual Neuropathological Patterns of Canine Primary Lymphoma, Ҫağla Aytaş, Francesca Parisi, Niccolò Fonti, Sara Degl’Innocenti, Carlo Cantile, University of Pisa – Game of Research 2023
Morphological and Immunohistochemical Modifications in Progressive Post-mortem Changes of The Central Nervous System, Francesca Parisi, Sara Degl’Innocenti, Ҫağla Aytaş, Carlo Cantile, University of Pisa – SISVET 2024