Corpora arenacea explained

Corpora arenacea should not be confused with Corpora amylacea.

Brain sand
Latin:	corpora arenacea

Corpora arenacea (singular: corpus arenaceum,^[1] also called brain sand or acervuli^{[2] [3]} or psammoma bodies or pineal concretions^[4]) are calcified structures in the pineal gland and other areas of the brain such as the choroid plexus. Older organisms have numerous corpora arenacea, whose function, if any, is unknown. Concentrations of "brain sand" increase with age, so the pineal gland becomes increasingly visible on X-rays over time, usually by the third or fourth decade. They are sometimes used as anatomical landmarks in radiological examinations.^[5]

Chemical analysis shows that they are composed of calcium phosphate (later characterized as hydroxyapatite^[6]), calcium carbonate, magnesium phosphate, and ammonium phosphate.^[7] Recently, calcite deposits have been described as well.^[8]

Further reading

• Garma-Aviña . A. . Excretory Plugs from the Choroid Plexus in the Cerebrospinal Fluid of Dogs with Neurological Disease: Possible Role in the Formation of Corpora Arenacea . Journal of Comparative Pathology . 123 . 2–3 . 146–51 . 2000 . 11032668 . 10.1053/jcpa.2000.0405 .
• Russel J. Reiter. Reiter . Russel J. . Welsh . Marcia G. . Vaughan . Mary K. . Age-related changes in the intact and sympathetically denervated gerbil pineal gland . American Journal of Anatomy . 146 . 4 . 427–31 . 1976 . 941859 . 10.1002/aja.1001460405 .
• Klein . Pavel . Rubinstein . Lucien J . Benign symptomatic glial cysts of the pineal gland: a report of seven cases and review of the literature . Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry . 52 . 8 . 991–5 . 1989 . 2677249 . 1031840 . 10.1136/jnnp.52.8.991 .
• Vigh . B . Vigh-Teichmann . I . Aros . B . Pineal corpora arenacea produced by arachnoid cells in the bat Myotis blythi oxygnathus . Zeitschrift für Mikroskopisch-anatomische Forschung . 103 . 1 . 36–45 . 1989 . 2756745 .

External links

• • - "Pineal gland"

Notes and References

1. Tomonari . Yuki . Sato . Junko . Wako . Yumi . Tsuchitani . Minoru . Age-related Histological Findings in the Pineal Gland of Crl:CD(SD) Rats . Journal of Toxicologic Pathology . 25 . 4 . 287–91 . 2012 . 23345933 . 3517926 . 10.1293/tox.25.287 .
2. Vígh . B . Szél . A . Debreceni . K . Fejér . Z . Manzano e Silva . MJ . Vígh-Teichmann . I . Comparative histology of pineal calcification . Histology and Histopathology . 13 . 3 . 851–70 . 1998 . 9690142 . 2016-08-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161017075340/http://revistas.um.es/hh/article/view/130151/0 . 2016-10-17 . dead .
3. Kim . Jinkyung . Kim . Hyun-Wook . Chang . Soeun . Kim . Jee Woong . Je . Jung Ho . Rhyu . Im Joo . Growth patterns for acervuli in human pineal gland . Scientific Reports . 2 . 984 . 2012 . 23248747 . 3523289 . 10.1038/srep00984 . 2012NatSR...2E.984K .
4. Tan. Dun Xian. Xu. Bing. Zhou. Xinjia. Reiter. Russel J.. 2018-01-31. Pineal Calcification, Melatonin Production, Aging, Associated Health Consequences and Rejuvenation of the Pineal Gland. Molecules. 23. 2. 301. 10.3390/molecules23020301. 1420-3049. 6017004. 29385085. free.
5. Web site: thesis:The Effect of Fluoride on the Physiology of the Pineal Gland. 2016-08-04. " The calcified pineal is used as a landmark in skull X- rays because of its radio-opacity".
6. 10.1111/j.1699-0463.1958.tb01060.x. A Microradiographic and X-Ray Crystallographic Study of Calcium in the Pineal Body and in Intracranial Tumours. Acta Pathologica et Microbiologica Scandinavica. 44. 2. 113–119. 2009. Angervall. Lennart. Berger. Sven. Röckert. Hans. 13594470.
7. Bocchi . Giancarlo . Valdre . Giovanni . Valdre . Giovanni . Physical, chemical, and mineralogical characterization of carbonate-hydroxyapatite concretions of the human pineal gland . Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry . 49 . 3 . 209–20 . 1993 . 8381851 . 10.1016/0162-0134(93)80006-U .
8. Baconnier . Simon . Lang . Sidney B. . Polomska . Maria . Hilczer . Bozena . Berkovic . Garry . Meshulam . Guilia . Calcite microcrystals in the pineal gland of the human brain: First physical and chemical studies . Bioelectromagnetics . 23 . 7 . 488–95 . 2002 . 12224052 . 10.1002/bem.10053 . 13276067 .