1
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Tomić A, Sarasso E, Basaia S, Dragašević-Misković N, Svetel M, Kostić VS, Filippi M, Agosta F. Structural brain heterogeneity underlying symptomatic and asymptomatic genetic dystonia: a multimodal MRI study. J Neurol 2024; 271:1767-1775. [PMID: 38019294 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-023-12098-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 11/02/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Most of DYT genotypes follow an autosomal dominant inheritance pattern with reduced penetrance; the mechanisms underlying the disease development remain unclear. The objective of the study was to investigate cortical thickness, grey matter (GM) volumes and white matter (WM) alterations in asymptomatic (DYT-A) and symptomatic dystonia (DYT-S) mutation carriers. METHODS Eight DYT-A (four DYT-TOR1A and four DYT-THAP1), 14 DYT-S (seven DYT-TOR1A, and seven DYT-THAP1), and 37 matched healthy controls underwent 3D T1-weighted and diffusion tensor (DT) MRI to study cortical thickness, cerebellar and basal ganglia GM volumes and WM microstructural changes. RESULTS DYT-S showed thinning of the frontal and motor cortical regions related to sensorimotor and cognitive processing, together with putaminal atrophy and subcortical microstructural WM damage of both motor and extra-motor tracts such as cerebral peduncle, corona radiata, internal and external capsule, temporal and orbitofrontal WM, and corpus callosum. DYT-A had cortical thickening of middle frontal areas and WM damage of the corona radiata. CONCLUSIONS DYT genes phenotypic expression is associated with alterations of both motor and extra-motor WM and GM regions. Asymptomatic genetic status is characterized by a very subtle affection of the WM motor pathway, together with an increased cortical thickness of higher-order frontal regions that might interfere with phenotypic presentation and disease manifestation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Tomić
- Clinic of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Elisabetta Sarasso
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal Child Health, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Silvia Basaia
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Marina Svetel
- Clinic of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Vladimir S Kostić
- Clinic of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Massimo Filippi
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
- Neurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Neurorehabilitation Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Neurophysiology Service, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Federica Agosta
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
- Neurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
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2
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Yellajoshyula D, Rogers AE, Kim AJ, Kim S, Pappas SS, Dauer WT. A pathogenic DYT-THAP1 dystonia mutation causes hypomyelination and loss of YY1 binding. Hum Mol Genet 2022; 31:1096-1104. [PMID: 34686877 PMCID: PMC8976427 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddab310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Dystonia is a disabling disease that manifests as prolonged involuntary twisting movements. DYT-THAP1 is an inherited form of isolated dystonia caused by mutations in THAP1 encoding the transcription factor THAP1. The phe81leu (F81L) missense mutation is representative of a category of poorly understood mutations that do not occur on residues critical for DNA binding. Here, we demonstrate that the F81L mutation (THAP1F81L) impairs THAP1 transcriptional activity and disrupts CNS myelination. Strikingly, THAP1F81L exhibits normal DNA binding but causes a significantly reduced DNA binding of YY1, its transcriptional partner that also has an established role in oligodendrocyte lineage progression. Our results suggest a model of molecular pathogenesis whereby THAP1F81L normally binds DNA but is unable to efficiently organize an active transcription complex.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Abigail E Rogers
- Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Audrey J Kim
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Sumin Kim
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Cellular and Molecular Biology Graduate Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Samuel S Pappas
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - William T Dauer
- Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
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3
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Simchick G, Shen A, Campbell B, Park HJ, West FD, Zhao Q. Pig Brains Have Homologous Resting-State Networks with Human Brains. Brain Connect 2019; 9:566-579. [PMID: 31115245 DOI: 10.1089/brain.2019.0673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Many neurological and psychiatric diseases in humans are caused by disruptions to large-scale functional properties of the brain, including functional connectivity. There has been growing interest in discovering the functional organization of brain networks in larger animal models. As a result, the use of translational pig models in neuroscience has significantly increased in the past decades. The gyrencephalic pig brain resembles the human brain more in anatomy, growth, and development than the brains of commonly used small laboratory animals such as rodents. In this work, resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data were acquired from a group of pigs (n = 12). rs-fMRI data were analyzed for resting-state networks (RSNs) by using independent component analysis and sparse dictionary learning. Six RSNs (executive control, cerebellar, sensorimotor, visual, auditory, and default mode) were detected that resemble their counterparts in human brains, as measured by Pearson spatial correlations and mean ratios. Supporting evidence of the validity of these RSNs was provided through the evaluation and quantification of structural connectivity measures (mean diffusivity, fractional anisotropy, fiber length, and fiber density) estimated from the DTI data. This study shows that as a translational, large animal model, pigs demonstrate great potential for mapping connectome-scale functional connectivity in experimental modeling of human brain disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory Simchick
- Bio-Imaging Research Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Regenerative Bioscience Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Alice Shen
- Bio-Imaging Research Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Brandon Campbell
- Bio-Imaging Research Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Hea Jin Park
- Department of Foods and Nutrition, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Franklin D West
- Regenerative Bioscience Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Department of Animal and Dairy Science, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Qun Zhao
- Bio-Imaging Research Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.,Regenerative Bioscience Center, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
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4
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Mackay M, Vo A, Tang CC, Small M, Anderson EW, Ploran EJ, Storbeck J, Bascetta B, Kang S, Aranow C, Sartori C, Watson P, Volpe BT, Diamond B, Eidelberg D. Metabolic and microstructural alterations in the SLE brain correlate with cognitive impairment. JCI Insight 2019; 4:124002. [PMID: 30626758 DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.124002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2018] [Accepted: 12/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
To address challenges in the diagnosis of cognitive dysfunction (CD) related to systemic lupus erythematosus-associated (SLE-associated) autoimmune mechanisms rather than confounding factors, we employed an integrated approach, using resting-state functional (FDG-PET) and structural (diffusion tensor imaging [DTI]) neuroimaging techniques and cognitive testing, in adult SLE patients with quiescent disease and no history of neuropsychiatric illness. We identified resting hypermetabolism in the sensorimotor cortex, occipital lobe, and temporal lobe of SLE subjects, in addition to validation of previously published resting hypermetabolism in the hippocampus, orbitofrontal cortex, and putamen/GP/thalamus. Regional hypermetabolism demonstrated abnormal interregional metabolic correlations, associated with impaired cognitive performance, and was stable over 15 months. DTI analyses demonstrated 4 clusters of decreased microstructural integrity in white matter tracts adjacent to hypermetabolic regions and significantly diminished connecting tracts in SLE subjects. Decreased microstructural integrity in the parahippocampal gyrus correlated with impaired spatial memory and increased serum titers of DNRAb, a neurotoxic autoantibody associated with neuropsychiatric lupus. These findings of regional hypermetabolism, associated with decreased microstructural integrity and poor cognitive performance and not associated with disease duration, disease activity, medications, or comorbid disease, suggest that this is a reproducible, stable marker for SLE-associated CD that may be may be used for early disease detection and to discriminate between groups, evaluate response to treatment strategies, or assess disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meggan Mackay
- Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal and Hematopoietic Diseases and
| | - An Vo
- Center for Neurosciences, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - Chris C Tang
- Center for Neurosciences, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - Michael Small
- Center for Neurosciences, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Justin Storbeck
- Department of Psychology, Queens College, Flushing, New York, USA
| | | | - Simran Kang
- Department of Psychology, Queens College, Flushing, New York, USA
| | - Cynthia Aranow
- Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal and Hematopoietic Diseases and
| | - Carl Sartori
- Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal and Hematopoietic Diseases and
| | - Philip Watson
- Department of Psychiatry, Northwell Health, Manhasset, New York, USA
| | - Bruce T Volpe
- Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal and Hematopoietic Diseases and
| | - Betty Diamond
- Autoimmune, Musculoskeletal and Hematopoietic Diseases and
| | - David Eidelberg
- Center for Neurosciences, Feinstein Institute for Medical Research and Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Manhasset, New York, USA
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5
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Fujita K, Sako W, Vo A, Bressman SB, Eidelberg D. Disruption of network for visual perception of natural motion in primary dystonia. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 39:1163-1174. [PMID: 29214728 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23907] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2017] [Revised: 10/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/29/2017] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
In healthy subjects, brain activation in motor regions is greater during the visual perception of "natural" target motion, which complies with the two-thirds power law, than of "unnatural" motion, which does not. It is unknown whether motion perception is normally mediated by a specific network that can be altered in the setting of disease. We used block-design functional magnetic resonance imaging and covariance analysis to identify normal network topographies activated in response to "natural" versus "unnatural" motion. A visual motion perception-related pattern (VPRP) was identified in 12 healthy subjects, characterized by covarying activation responses in the inferior parietal lobule, frontal operculum, lateral occipitotemporal cortex, amygdala, and cerebellum (Crus I). Selective VPRP activation during "natural" motion was confirmed in 12 testing scans from healthy subjects. Consistent network activation was not seen, however, in 29 patients with dystonia, a neurodevelopmental disorder in which motion perception pathways may be involved. Using diffusion tractography, we evaluated the integrity of anatomical connections between the major VPRP nodes. Indeed, fiber counts in these pathways were substantially reduced in the dystonia subjects. In aggregate, the findings associate normal motion perception with a discrete brain network which can be disrupted under pathological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Koji Fujita
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY, 11030
| | - Wataru Sako
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY, 11030
| | - An Vo
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY, 11030
| | - Susan B Bressman
- Mirken Department of Neurology, Mount Sinai Beth Israel, New York, NY, 10003
| | - David Eidelberg
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY, 11030
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6
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Bhagat SL, Qiu S, Caffall ZF, Wan Y, Pan Y, Rodriguiz RM, Wetsel WC, Badea A, Hochgeschwender U, Calakos N. Mouse model of rare TOR1A variant found in sporadic focal dystonia impairs domains affected in DYT1 dystonia patients and animal models. Neurobiol Dis 2016; 93:137-45. [PMID: 27168150 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2016.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2016] [Revised: 04/25/2016] [Accepted: 05/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Rare de novo mutations in genes associated with inherited Mendelian disorders are potential contributors to sporadic disease. DYT1 dystonia is an autosomal dominant, early-onset, generalized dystonia associated with an in-frame, trinucleotide deletion (n. delGAG, p. ΔE 302/303) in the Tor1a gene. Here we examine the significance of a rare missense variant in the Tor1a gene (c. 613T>A, p. F205I), previously identified in a patient with sporadic late-onset focal dystonia, by modeling it in mice. Homozygous F205I mice have motor impairment, reduced steady-state levels of TorsinA, altered corticostriatal synaptic plasticity, and prominent brain imaging abnormalities in areas associated with motor function. Thus, the F205I variant causes abnormalities in domains affected in people and/or mouse models with the DYT1 Tor1a mutation (ΔE). Our findings establish the pathological significance of the F205I Tor1a variant and provide a model with both etiological and phenotypic relevance to further investigate dystonia mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Srishti L Bhagat
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States; Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Sunny Qiu
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Zachary F Caffall
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Yehong Wan
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Yuanji Pan
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Ramona M Rodriguiz
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - William C Wetsel
- Duke Institute of Brain Sciences, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Alexandra Badea
- Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Ute Hochgeschwender
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States
| | - Nicole Calakos
- Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States; Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, United States; Duke Institute of Brain Sciences, United States.
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7
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Sako W, Fujita K, Vo A, Rucker JC, Rizzo JR, Niethammer M, Carbon M, Bressman SB, Uluğ AM, Eidelberg D. The visual perception of natural motion: abnormal task-related neural activity in DYT1 dystonia. Brain 2015; 138:3598-609. [PMID: 26419798 PMCID: PMC4840548 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awv282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2014] [Revised: 07/15/2015] [Accepted: 08/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Although primary dystonia is defined by its characteristic motor manifestations, non-motor signs and symptoms have increasingly been recognized in this disorder. Recent neuroimaging studies have related the motor features of primary dystonia to connectivity changes in cerebello-thalamo-cortical pathways. It is not known, however, whether the non-motor manifestations of the disorder are associated with similar circuit abnormalities. To explore this possibility, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study primary dystonia and healthy volunteer subjects while they performed a motion perception task in which elliptical target trajectories were visually tracked on a computer screen. Prior functional magnetic resonance imaging studies of healthy subjects performing this task have revealed selective activation of motor regions during the perception of 'natural' versus 'unnatural' motion (defined respectively as trajectories with kinematic properties that either comply with or violate the two-thirds power law of motion). Several regions with significant connectivity changes in primary dystonia were situated in proximity to normal motion perception pathways, suggesting that abnormalities of these circuits may also be present in this disorder. To determine whether activation responses to natural versus unnatural motion in primary dystonia differ from normal, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study 10 DYT1 dystonia and 10 healthy control subjects at rest and during the perception of 'natural' and 'unnatural' motion. Both groups exhibited significant activation changes across perceptual conditions in the cerebellum, pons, and subthalamic nucleus. The two groups differed, however, in their responses to 'natural' versus 'unnatural' motion in these regions. In healthy subjects, regional activation was greater during the perception of natural (versus unnatural) motion (P < 0.05). By contrast, in DYT1 dystonia subjects, activation was relatively greater during the perception of unnatural (versus natural) motion (P < 0.01). To explore the microstructural basis for these functional changes, the regions with significant interaction effects (i.e. those with group differences in activation across perceptual conditions) were used as seeds for tractographic analysis of diffusion tensor imaging scans acquired in the same subjects. Fibre pathways specifically connecting each of the significant functional magnetic resonance imaging clusters to the cerebellum were reconstructed. Of the various reconstructed pathways that were analysed, the ponto-cerebellar projection alone differed between groups, with reduced fibre integrity in dystonia (P < 0.001). In aggregate, the findings suggest that the normal pattern of brain activation in response to motion perception is disrupted in DYT1 dystonia. Thus, it is unlikely that the circuit changes that underlie this disorder are limited to primary sensorimotor pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wataru Sako
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Koji Fujita
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - An Vo
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Janet C Rucker
- 2 Department of Neurology, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - John-Ross Rizzo
- 3 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, NYU Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Martin Niethammer
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Maren Carbon
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Susan B Bressman
- 4 Mirken Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Aziz M Uluğ
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA 5 Department of Radiology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA 6 Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - David Eidelberg
- 1 Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
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8
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Genetic animal models of dystonia: common features and diversities. Prog Neurobiol 2014; 121:91-113. [PMID: 25034123 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2014.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2014] [Revised: 06/06/2014] [Accepted: 07/03/2014] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Animal models are pivotal for studies of pathogenesis and treatment of disorders of the central nervous system which in its complexity cannot yet be modeled in vitro or using computer simulations. The choice of a specific model to test novel therapeutic strategies for a human disease should be based on validity of the model for the approach: does the model reflect symptoms, pathogenesis and treatment response present in human patients? In the movement disorder dystonia, prior to the availability of genetically engineered mice, spontaneous mutants were chosen based on expression of dystonic features, including abnormal muscle contraction, movements and postures. Recent discovery of a number of genes and gene products involved in dystonia initiated research on pathogenesis of the disorder, and the creation of novel models based on gene mutations. Here we present a review of current models of dystonia, with a focus on genetic rodent models, which will likely be first choice in the future either for pathophysiological or for preclinical drug testing or both. In order to help selection of a model depending on expression of a specific feature of dystonia, this review is organized by symptoms and current knowledge of pathogenesis of dystonia. We conclude that albeit there is increasing need for research on pathogenesis of the disease and development of improved models, current models do replicate features of dystonia and are useful tools to develop urgently demanded treatment for this debilitating disorder.
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9
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Vo A, Sako W, Niethammer M, Carbon M, Bressman SB, Uluğ AM, Eidelberg D. Thalamocortical Connectivity Correlates with Phenotypic Variability in Dystonia. Cereb Cortex 2014; 25:3086-94. [PMID: 24860017 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhu104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Dystonia is a brain disorder characterized by abnormal involuntary movements without defining neuropathological changes. The disease is often inherited as an autosomal-dominant trait with incomplete penetrance. Individuals with dystonia, whether inherited or sporadic, exhibit striking phenotypic variability, with marked differences in the somatic distribution and severity of clinical manifestations. In the current study, we used magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging to identify microstructural changes associated with specific limb manifestations. Functional MRI was used to localize specific limb regions within the somatosensory cortex. Microstructural integrity was preserved when assessed in subrolandic white matter regions somatotopically related to the clinically involved limbs, but was reduced in regions linked to clinically uninvolved (asymptomatic) body areas. Clinical manifestations were greatest in subjects with relatively intact microstructure in somatotopically relevant white matter regions. Tractography revealed significant phenotype-related differences in the visualized thalamocortical tracts while corticostriatal and corticospinal pathways did not differ between groups. Cerebellothalamic microstructural abnormalities were also seen in the dystonia subjects, but these changes were associated with genotype, rather than with phenotypic variation. The findings suggest that the thalamocortical motor system is a major determinant of dystonia phenotype. This pathway may represent a novel therapeutic target for individuals with refractory limb dystonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- An Vo
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Wataru Sako
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Martin Niethammer
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Maren Carbon
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
| | - Susan B Bressman
- Mirken Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Aziz M Uluğ
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA Department of Radiology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461, USA
| | - David Eidelberg
- Center for Neurosciences, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, Manhasset, NY 11030, USA
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10
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Gu S, Meng X, Sciurba FC, Ma H, Leader J, Kaminski N, Gur D, Pu J. Bidirectional elastic image registration using B-spline affine transformation. Comput Med Imaging Graph 2014; 38:306-14. [PMID: 24530210 DOI: 10.1016/j.compmedimag.2014.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2013] [Revised: 12/13/2013] [Accepted: 01/14/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
A registration scheme termed as B-spline affine transformation (BSAT) is presented in this study to elastically align two images. We define an affine transformation instead of the traditional translation at each control point. Mathematically, BSAT is a generalized form of the affine transformation and the traditional B-spline transformation (BST). In order to improve the performance of the iterative closest point (ICP) method in registering two homologous shapes but with large deformation, a bidirectional instead of the traditional unidirectional objective/cost function is proposed. In implementation, the objective function is formulated as a sparse linear equation problem, and a sub-division strategy is used to achieve a reasonable efficiency in registration. The performance of the developed scheme was assessed using both two-dimensional (2D) synthesized dataset and three-dimensional (3D) volumetric computed tomography (CT) data. Our experiments showed that the proposed B-spline affine model could obtain reasonable registration accuracy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suicheng Gu
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - Xin Meng
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - Frank C Sciurba
- Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - Hongxia Ma
- Department of Radiology, University of Xi'an Jiaotong University First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an, Shaanxi, P.R. China
| | - Joseph Leader
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - Naftali Kaminski
- Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - David Gur
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
| | - Jiantao Pu
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States; Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States.
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11
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Abstract
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a prevalent and often severely disabling illness with onset generally in childhood or adolescence. Although white matter deficits have been implicated in the neurobiology of OCD, few studies have been conducted in pediatric patients when the brain is still developing and have examined their functional correlates. In this study, 23 pediatric OCD patients and 23 healthy volunteers, between the ages of 9 and 17 years, matched for sex, age, handedness, and IQ, received a diffusion tensor imaging exam on a 3T GE system and a brief neuropsychological battery tapping executive functions. Patient symptom severity was assessed using the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS). Patients with OCD exhibited significantly greater fractional anisotropy compared to matched controls in the left dorsal cingulum bundle, splenium of the corpus callosum, right corticospinal tract, and left inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus. There were no regions of significantly lower fractional anisotropy in patients compared to controls. Higher fractional anisotropy in the splenium was significantly correlated with greater obsession severity on the CY-BOCS in the subgroup of psychotropic drug-naïve patients. Among patients, there was a significant association between greater fractional anisotropy in the dorsal cingulum bundle and better performance on measures of response inhibition and cognitive control. The overall findings suggest a pattern of greater directional coherence of white matter tracts in OCD very early in the course of illness, which may serve a compensatory mechanism, at least for response inhibition functions typically subserved by the cingulum bundle.
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