Anterior horn cell changes in a case of neurolathyrism

A man of 67 yr died of myocardial infarction. At 35, he had been imprisoned in a concentration camp where the principal diet was composed of chick peas, Lathyrus sativus. Within 1 yr, he developed spastic paraparesis which lasted until his death. Light and electron microscopic studies were made of the anterior horn cells in this case of neurolathyrism. Eosinophilic inclusions were observed at the light microscopic level. Fine structural study revealed two types of cytoplasmic inclusions. The first were aggregates of filaments, approximately 80-100 Å in width, arranged in small bundles. The second were crystalloid structures composed of elongated elements, about 800 Å wide, with hexagonal cross sections. The relation to each other and the significance of these inclusions are unknown.