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Solana-Balaguer J, Garcia-Segura P, Campoy-Campos G, Chicote-González A, Fernández-Irigoyen J, Santamaría E, Pérez-Navarro E, Masana M, Alberch J, Malagelada C. Motor skill learning modulates striatal extracellular vesicles' content in a mouse model of Huntington's disease. Cell Commun Signal 2024; 22:321. [PMID: 38863004 PMCID: PMC11167907 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-024-01693-9] [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: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 05/29/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurological disorder caused by a CAG expansion in the Huntingtin gene (HTT). HD pathology mostly affects striatal medium-sized spiny neurons and results in an altered cortico-striatal function. Recent studies report that motor skill learning, and cortico-striatal stimulation attenuate the neuropathology in HD, resulting in an amelioration of some motor and cognitive functions. During physical training, extracellular vesicles (EVs) are released in many tissues, including the brain, as a potential means for inter-tissue communication. To investigate how motor skill learning, involving acute physical training, modulates EVs crosstalk between cells in the striatum, we trained wild-type (WT) and R6/1 mice, the latter with motor and cognitive deficits, on the accelerating rotarod test, and we isolated their striatal EVs. EVs from R6/1 mice presented alterations in the small exosome population when compared to WT. Proteomic analyses revealed that striatal R6/1 EVs recapitulated signaling and energy deficiencies present in HD. Motor skill learning in R6/1 mice restored the amount of EVs and their protein content in comparison to naïve R6/1 mice. Furthermore, motor skill learning modulated crucial pathways in metabolism and neurodegeneration. All these data provide new insights into the pathogenesis of HD and put striatal EVs in the spotlight to understand the signaling and metabolic alterations in neurodegenerative diseases. Moreover, our results suggest that motor learning is a crucial modulator of cell-to-cell communication in the striatum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Júlia Solana-Balaguer
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain.
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Pol Garcia-Segura
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Genís Campoy-Campos
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Almudena Chicote-González
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
| | | | - Enrique Santamaría
- Proteored-ISCIII, Proteomics Unit, Departamento de Salud, UPNA, Navarrabiomed, Pamplona, IdiSNA, Spain
| | - Esther Pérez-Navarro
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mercè Masana
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jordi Alberch
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Cristina Malagelada
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Casanova 143, North Wing, 3rd Floor, Barcelona, Catalonia, 08036, Spain.
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Barcelona, Spain.
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Ponomareva NV, Klyushnikov SA, Abramycheva N, Konovalov RN, Krotenkova M, Kolesnikova E, Malina D, Urazgildeeva G, Kanavets E, Mitrofanov A, Fokin V, Rogaev E, Illarioshkin SN. Neurophysiological hallmarks of Huntington's disease progression: an EEG and fMRI connectivity study. Front Aging Neurosci 2023; 15:1270226. [PMID: 38161585 PMCID: PMC10755012 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1270226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) can provide corroborative data on neurophysiological alterations in Huntington's disease (HD). However, the alterations in EEG and fMRI resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC), as well as their interrelations, at different stages of HD remain insufficiently investigated. This study aimed to identify neurophysiological alterations in individuals with preclinical HD (preHD) and early manifest HD (EMHD) by analyzing EEG and fMRI rsFC and examining their interrelationships. We found significant differences in EEG power between preHD individuals and healthy controls (HC), with a decrease in power in a specific frequency range at the theta-alpha border and slow alpha activity. In EMHD patients, in addition to the decrease in power in the 7-9 Hz range, a reduction in power within the classic alpha band compared to HC was observed. The fMRI analysis revealed disrupted functional connectivity in various brain networks, particularly within frontal lobe, putamen-cortical, and cortico-cerebellar networks, in individuals with the HD mutation compared to HC. The analysis of the relationship between EEG and fMRI rsFC revealed an association between decreased alpha power, observed in individuals with EMHD, and increased connectivity in large-scale brain networks. These networks include putamen-cortical, DMN-related and cortico-hippocampal circuits. Overall, the findings suggest that EEG and fMRI provide valuable information for monitoring pathological processes during the development of HD. A decrease in inhibitory control within the putamen-cortical, DMN-related and cortico-hippocampal circuits, accompanied by a reduction in alpha and theta-alpha border oscillatory activity, could potentially contribute to cognitive decline in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalya V. Ponomareva
- Research Center of Neurology, Moscow, Russia
- Center for Genetics and Life Science, Sirius University of Science and Technology, Sochi, Russia
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Evgeny Rogaev
- Center for Genetics and Life Science, Sirius University of Science and Technology, Sochi, Russia
- Department of Psychiatry, Umass Chan Medical School, Shrewsbury, MA, United States
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Evangelisti S, Boessenkool S, Pflanz CP, Basting R, Betts JF, Jenkinson M, Clare S, Muhammed K, LeHeron C, Armstrong R, Klein JC, Husain M, Nemeth AH, Hu MT, Douaud G. Subthalamic nucleus shows opposite functional connectivity pattern in Huntington's and Parkinson's disease. Brain Commun 2023; 5:fcad282. [PMID: 38075949 PMCID: PMC10699743 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcad282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Huntington's and Parkinson's disease are two movement disorders representing mainly opposite states of the basal ganglia inhibitory function. Despite being an integral part of the cortico-subcortico-cortical circuitry, the subthalamic nucleus function has been studied at the level of detail required to isolate its signal only through invasive studies in Huntington's and Parkinson's disease. Here, we tested whether the subthalamic nucleus exhibited opposite functional signatures in early Huntington's and Parkinson's disease. We included both movement disorders in the same whole-brain imaging study, and leveraged ultra-high-field 7T MRI to achieve the very fine resolution needed to investigate the smallest of the basal ganglia nuclei. Eleven of the 12 Huntington's disease carriers were recruited at a premanifest stage, while 16 of the 18 Parkinson's disease patients only exhibited unilateral motor symptoms (15 were at Stage I of Hoehn and Yahr off medication). Our group comparison interaction analyses, including 24 healthy controls, revealed a differential effect of Huntington's and Parkinson's disease on the functional connectivity at rest of the subthalamic nucleus within the sensorimotor network, i.e. an opposite effect compared with their respective age-matched healthy control groups. This differential impact in the subthalamic nucleus included an area precisely corresponding to the deep brain stimulation 'sweet spot'-the area with maximum overall efficacy-in Parkinson's disease. Importantly, the severity of deviation away from controls' resting-state values in the subthalamic nucleus was associated with the severity of motor and cognitive symptoms in both diseases, despite functional connectivity going in opposite directions in each disorder. We also observed an altered, opposite impact of Huntington's and Parkinson's disease on functional connectivity within the sensorimotor cortex, once again with relevant associations with clinical symptoms. The high resolution offered by the 7T scanner has thus made it possible to explore the complex interplay between the disease effects and their contribution on the subthalamic nucleus, and sensorimotor cortex. Taken altogether, these findings reveal for the first time non-invasively in humans a differential, clinically meaningful impact of the pathophysiological process of these two movement disorders on the overall sensorimotor functional connection of the subthalamic nucleus and sensorimotor cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Evangelisti
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, 40127 Bologna, Italy
| | - Sirius Boessenkool
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Chris Patrick Pflanz
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Stroke Research Group, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, CB2 0QQ Cambridge, UK
| | - Romina Basting
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX2 6GG Oxford, UK
| | - Jill F Betts
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Mark Jenkinson
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- School of Computer Science, Faculty of Engineering, University of Adelaide, 5005 Adelaide, Australia
| | - Stuart Clare
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Kinan Muhammed
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Campbell LeHeron
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- New Zealand Brain Research Institute, 8011 Christchurch, New Zealand
| | - Richard Armstrong
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Johannes C Klein
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Masud Husain
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX2 6GG Oxford, UK
| | - Andrea H Nemeth
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Michele T Hu
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
| | - Gwenaëlle Douaud
- FMRIB Centre, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU Oxford, UK
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Manivannan A, Foley LM, Hitchens TK, Rattray I, Bates GP, Modo M. Ex vivo 100 μm isotropic diffusion MRI-based tractography of connectivity changes in the end-stage R6/2 mouse model of Huntington's disease. NEUROPROTECTION 2023; 1:66-83. [PMID: 37745674 PMCID: PMC10516267 DOI: 10.1002/nep3.14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 09/26/2023]
Abstract
Background Huntington's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Brain atrophy, as measured by volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is a downstream consequence of neurodegeneration, but microstructural changes within brain tissue are expected to precede this volumetric decline. The tissue microstructure can be assayed non-invasively using diffusion MRI, which also allows a tractographic analysis of brain connectivity. Methods We here used ex vivo diffusion MRI (11.7 T) to measure microstructural changes in different brain regions of end-stage (14 weeks of age) wild type and R6/2 mice (male and female) modeling Huntington's disease. To probe the microstructure of different brain regions, reduce partial volume effects and measure connectivity between different regions, a 100 μm isotropic voxel resolution was acquired. Results Although fractional anisotropy did not reveal any difference between wild-type controls and R6/2 mice, mean, axial, and radial diffusivity were increased in female R6/2 mice and decreased in male R6/2 mice. Whole brain streamlines were only reduced in male R6/2 mice, but streamline density was increased. Region-to-region tractography indicated reductions in connectivity between the cortex, hippocampus, and thalamus with the striatum, as well as within the basal ganglia (striatum-globus pallidus-subthalamic nucleus-substantia nigra-thalamus). Conclusions Biological sex and left/right hemisphere affected tractographic results, potentially reflecting different stages of disease progression. This proof-of-principle study indicates that diffusion MRI and tractography potentially provide novel biomarkers that connect volumetric changes across different brain regions. In a translation setting, these measurements constitute a novel tool to assess the therapeutic impact of interventions such as neuroprotective agents in transgenic models, as well as patients with Huntington's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashwinee Manivannan
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Lesley M. Foley
- Animal Imaging Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - T. Kevin Hitchens
- Animal Imaging Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ivan Rattray
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, Huntington’s Disease Centre and UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL, University College London, London, UK
| | - Gillian P. Bates
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, Huntington’s Disease Centre and UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL, University College London, London, UK
| | - Michel Modo
- Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
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Zhang S, Lin J, Cheng Y, Hou Y, Shang H. Aberrant resting-state brain activity in Huntington's disease: A voxel-based meta-analysis. Front Neurol 2023; 14:1124158. [PMID: 37064205 PMCID: PMC10098104 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1124158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023] Open
Abstract
IntroductionFunctional neuroimaging could provide abundant information of underling pathophysiological mechanisms of the clinical triad including motor, cognitive and psychiatric impairment in Huntington's Disease (HD).MethodsWe performed a voxel-based meta-analysis using anisotropic effect size-signed differential mapping (AES-SDM) method.Results6 studies (78 symptomatic HD, 102 premanifest HD and 131 healthy controls) were included in total. Altered resting-state brain activity was primarily detected in the bilateral medial part of superior frontal gyrus, bilateral anterior cingulate/paracingulate gyrus, left insula, left striatum, right cortico-spinal projections area, right inferior temporal gyrus area, right thalamus, right cerebellum and right gyrus rectus area. Premanifest and symptomatic HD patients showed different alterative pattern in the subgroup analyses.DiscussionThe robust and consistent abnormalities in the specific brain regions identified in the current study could help to understand the pathophysiology of HD and explore reliable neuroimaging biomarkers for monitoring disease progression, or even predicting the onset of premanifest HD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sirui Zhang
- Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Rare Disease Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- West China School of Medicine, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Junyu Lin
- Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Rare Disease Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yangfan Cheng
- Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Rare Disease Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yanbin Hou
- Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Rare Disease Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Huifang Shang
- Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Rare Disease Center, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- *Correspondence: Huifang Shang
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Vasilkovska T, Adhikari M, Van Audekerke J, Salajeghe S, Pustina D, Cachope R, Tang H, Liu L, Munoz-Sanjuan I, Van der Linden A, Verhoye M. Resting-state fMRI reveals longitudinal alterations in brain network connectivity in the zQ175DN mouse model of Huntington's disease. Neurobiol Dis 2023; 181:106095. [PMID: 36963694 DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2023.106095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2023] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 03/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease is an autosomal, dominantly inherited neurodegenerative disease caused by an expansion of the CAG repeats in exon 1 of the huntingtin gene. Neuronal degeneration and dysfunction that precedes regional atrophy result in the impairment of striatal and cortical circuits that affect the brain's large-scale network functionality. However, the evolution of these disease-driven, large-scale connectivity alterations is still poorly understood. Here we used resting-state fMRI to investigate functional connectivity changes in a mouse model of Huntington's disease in several relevant brain networks and how they are affected at different ages that follow a disease-like phenotypic progression. Towards this, we used the heterozygous (HET) form of the zQ175DN Huntington's disease mouse model that recapitulates aspects of human disease pathology. Seed- and Region-based analyses were performed at different ages, on 3-, 6-, 10-, and 12-month-old HET and age-matched wild-type mice. Our results demonstrate decreased connectivity starting at 6 months of age, most prominently in regions such as the retrosplenial and cingulate cortices, pertaining to the default mode-like network and auditory and visual cortices, part of the associative cortical network. At 12 months, we observe a shift towards decreased connectivity in regions such as the somatosensory cortices, pertaining to the lateral cortical network, and the caudate putamen, a constituent of the subcortical network. Moreover, we assessed the impact of distinct Huntington's Disease-like pathology of the zQ175DN HET mice on age-dependent connectivity between different brain regions and networks where we demonstrate that connectivity strength follows a nonlinear, inverted U-shape pattern, a well-known phenomenon of development and normal aging. Conversely, the neuropathologically driven alteration of connectivity, especially in the default mode and associative cortical networks, showed diminished age-dependent evolution of functional connectivity. These findings reveal that in this Huntington's disease model, altered connectivity starts with cortical network aberrations which precede striatal connectivity changes, that appear only at a later age. Taken together, these results suggest that the age-dependent cortical network dysfunction seen in rodents could represent a relevant pathological process in Huntington's disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamara Vasilkovska
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Mohit Adhikari
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Johan Van Audekerke
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Somaie Salajeghe
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | | | - Haiying Tang
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Longbin Liu
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | | | - Annemie Van der Linden
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marleen Verhoye
- Bio-Imaging Lab, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium; μNEURO Research Centre of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
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Marapin RS, van der Horn HJ, van der Stouwe AMM, Dalenberg JR, de Jong BM, Tijssen MAJ. Altered brain connectivity in hyperkinetic movement disorders: A review of resting-state fMRI. Neuroimage Clin 2023; 37:103302. [PMID: 36669351 PMCID: PMC9868884 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2022.103302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2022] [Revised: 12/21/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hyperkinetic movement disorders (HMD) manifest as abnormal and uncontrollable movements. Despite reported involvement of several neural circuits, exact connectivity profiles remain elusive. OBJECTIVES Providing a comprehensive literature review of resting-state brain connectivity alterations using resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI). We additionally discuss alterations from the perspective of brain networks, as well as correlations between connectivity and clinical measures. METHODS A systematic review was performed according to PRISMA guidelines and searching PubMed until October 2022. Rs-fMRI studies addressing ataxia, chorea, dystonia, myoclonus, tics, tremor, and functional movement disorders (FMD) were included. The standardized mean difference was used to summarize findings per region in the Automated Anatomical Labeling atlas for each phenotype. Furthermore, the activation likelihood estimation meta-analytic method was used to analyze convergence of significant between-group differences per phenotype. Finally, we conducted hierarchical cluster analysis to provide additional insights into commonalities and differences across HMD phenotypes. RESULTS Most articles concerned tremor (51), followed by dystonia (46), tics (19), chorea (12), myoclonus (11), FMD (11), and ataxia (8). Altered resting-state connectivity was found in several brain regions: in ataxia mainly cerebellar areas; for chorea, the caudate nucleus; for dystonia, sensorimotor and basal ganglia regions; for myoclonus, the thalamus and cingulate cortex; in tics, the basal ganglia, cerebellum, insula, and frontal cortex; for tremor, the cerebello-thalamo-cortical circuit; finally, in FMD, frontal, parietal, and cerebellar regions. Both decreased and increased connectivity were found for all HMD. Significant spatial convergence was found for dystonia, FMD, myoclonus, and tremor. Correlations between clinical measures and resting-state connectivity were frequently described. CONCLUSION Key brain regions contributing to functional connectivity changes across HMD often overlap. Possible increases and decreases of functional connections of a specific region emphasize that HMD should be viewed as a network disorder. Despite the complex interplay of physiological and methodological factors, this review serves to gain insight in brain connectivity profiles across HMD phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ramesh S Marapin
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands; Expertise Center Movement Disorders Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Harm J van der Horn
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - A M Madelein van der Stouwe
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands; Expertise Center Movement Disorders Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Jelle R Dalenberg
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands; Expertise Center Movement Disorders Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Bauke M de Jong
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Marina A J Tijssen
- University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, the Netherlands; Expertise Center Movement Disorders Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, the Netherlands.
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Weiss AR, Liguore WA, Brandon K, Wang X, Liu Z, Domire JS, Button D, Srinivasan S, Kroenke CD, McBride JL. A novel rhesus macaque model of Huntington's disease recapitulates key neuropathological changes along with motor and cognitive decline. eLife 2022; 11:e77568. [PMID: 36205397 PMCID: PMC9545527 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We created a new nonhuman primate model of the genetic neurodegenerative disorder Huntington's disease (HD) by injecting a mixture of recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors, serotypes AAV2 and AAV2.retro, each expressing a fragment of human mutant HTT (mHTT) into the caudate and putamen of adult rhesus macaques. This modeling strategy results in expression of mutant huntingtin protein (mHTT) and aggregate formation in the injected brain regions, as well as dozens of other cortical and subcortical brain regions affected in human HD patients. We queried the disruption of cortico-basal ganglia circuitry for 30 months post-surgery using a variety of behavioral and imaging readouts. Compared to controls, mHTT-treated macaques developed working memory decline and progressive motor impairment. Multimodal imaging revealed circuit-wide white and gray matter degenerative processes in several key brain regions affected in HD. Taken together, we have developed a novel macaque model of HD that may be used to develop disease biomarkers and screen promising therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison R Weiss
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - William A Liguore
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - Kristin Brandon
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - Xiaojie Wang
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science UniversityPortlandUnited States
| | - Zheng Liu
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science UniversityPortlandUnited States
| | - Jacqueline S Domire
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - Dana Button
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - Sathya Srinivasan
- Imaging and Morphology Support Core, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
| | - Christopher D Kroenke
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science UniversityPortlandUnited States
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science UniversityPortlandUnited States
| | - Jodi L McBride
- Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research CenterBeavertonUnited States
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science UniversityPortlandUnited States
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9
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Kaye J, Reisine T, Finkbeiner S. Huntington's disease mouse models: unraveling the pathology caused by CAG repeat expansion. Fac Rev 2021; 10:77. [PMID: 34746930 PMCID: PMC8546598 DOI: 10.12703/r/10-77] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disease that results in motor and cognitive dysfunction, leading to early death. HD is caused by an expansion of CAG repeats in the huntingtin gene (HTT). Here, we review the mouse models of HD. They have been used extensively to better understand the molecular and cellular basis of disease pathogenesis as well as to provide non-human subjects to test the efficacy of potential therapeutics. The first and best-studied in vivo rodent model of HD is the R6/2 mouse, in which a transgene containing the promoter and exon 1 fragment of human HTT with 150 CAG repeats was inserted into the mouse genome. R6/2 mice express rapid, robust behavioral pathologies and display a number of degenerative abnormalities in neuronal populations most vulnerable in HD. The first conditional full-length mutant huntingtin (mHTT) mouse model of HD was the bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) transgenic mouse model of HD (BACHD), which expresses human full-length mHTT with a mixture of 97 CAG-CAA repeats under the control of endogenous HTT regulatory machinery. It has been useful in identifying the role of mHTT in specific neuronal populations in degenerative processes. In the knock-in (KI) model of HD, the expanded human CAG repeats and human exon 1 are inserted into the mouse Htt locus, so a chimera of the full-length mouse protein with the N-terminal human portion is expressed. Many of aspects of the pathology and behavioral deficits in the KI model better mimic disease characteristics found in HD patients than other models. Accordingly, some have proposed that these mice may be preferable models of the disease over others. Indeed, as our understanding of HD advances, so will the design of animal models to test and develop HD therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Kaye
- Center for Systems and Therapeutics, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Terry Reisine
- Independent Scientific Consultant, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
| | - Steve Finkbeiner
- Center for Systems and Therapeutics, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Taube/Koret Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Neurology and Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
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10
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Aracil-Bolaños I, Martínez-Horta S, González-de-Echávarri JM, Sampedro F, Pérez-Pérez J, Horta A, Campolongo A, Izquierdo C, Gómez-Ansón B, Pagonabarraga J, Kulisevsky J. Structure and Dynamics of Large-Scale Cognitive Networks in Huntington's Disease. Mov Disord 2021; 37:343-353. [PMID: 34752656 DOI: 10.1002/mds.28839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Huntington's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by clinical alterations in the motor, behavioral, and cognitive domains. However, the structure and disruptions to large-scale brain cognitive networks have not yet been established. OBJECTIVE We aimed to profile changes in large-scale cognitive networks in premanifest and symptomatic patients with Huntington's disease. METHODS We prospectively recruited premanifest and symptomatic Huntington's disease mutation carriers as well as healthy controls. Clinical and sociodemographic data were obtained from all participants, and resting-state functional connectivity data, using both time-averaged and dynamic functional connectivity, was acquired from whole-brain and cognitively oriented brain parcellations. RESULTS A total of 64 gene mutation carriers and 23 healthy controls were included; 21 patients with Huntington's disease were classified as premanifest and 43 as symptomatic Huntington's disease. Compared with healthy controls, patients with Huntington's disease showed decreased network connectivity within the posterior hubs of the default-mode network and the medial prefrontal cortex, changes that correlated with cognitive (t = 2.25, P = 0.01) and disease burden scores (t = -2.42, P = 0.009). The salience network showed decreased functional connectivity between insular and supramarginal cortices and also correlated with cognitive (t = 2.11, P = 0.02) and disease burden scores (t = -2.35, P = 0.01). Dynamic analyses showed that network variability was decreased for default-central executive networks, a feature already present in premanifest mutation carriers (dynamic factor 8, P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS Huntington's disease shows an early and widespread disruption of large-scale cognitive networks. Importantly, these changes are related to cognitive and disease burden scores, and novel dynamic functional analyses uncovered subtler network changes even in the premanifest stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio Aracil-Bolaños
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Saül Martínez-Horta
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jose M González-de-Echávarri
- Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation and Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Frederic Sampedro
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jesús Pérez-Pérez
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Andrea Horta
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Antonia Campolongo
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Cristina Izquierdo
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Beatriz Gómez-Ansón
- Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain.,Neuroradiology Unit, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Javier Pagonabarraga
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jaime Kulisevsky
- Movement Disorders Unit, Neurology Department, Sant Pau Hospital, Barcelona, Spain.,Departament de Medicina, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques-Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación en Red-Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas, Madrid, Spain
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11
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Fernández-García S, Conde-Berriozabal S, García-García E, Gort-Paniello C, Bernal-Casas D, García-Díaz Barriga G, López-Gil J, Muñoz-Moreno E, Soria G, Campa L, Artigas F, Rodríguez MJ, Alberch J, Masana M. M2 cortex-dorsolateral striatum stimulation reverses motor symptoms and synaptic deficits in Huntington's disease. eLife 2020; 9:57017. [PMID: 33016873 PMCID: PMC7535932 DOI: 10.7554/elife.57017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a neurological disorder characterized by motor disturbances. HD pathology is most prominent in the striatum, the central hub of the basal ganglia. The cerebral cortex is the main striatal afferent, and progressive cortico-striatal disconnection characterizes HD. We mapped striatal network dysfunction in HD mice to ultimately modulate the activity of a specific cortico-striatal circuit to ameliorate motor symptoms and recover synaptic plasticity. Multimodal MRI in vivo indicates cortico-striatal and thalamo-striatal functional network deficits and reduced glutamate/glutamine ratio in the striatum of HD mice. Moreover, optogenetically-induced glutamate release from M2 cortex terminals in the dorsolateral striatum (DLS) was undetectable in HD mice and striatal neurons show blunted electrophysiological responses. Remarkably, repeated M2-DLS optogenetic stimulation normalized motor behavior in HD mice and evoked a sustained increase of synaptic plasticity. Overall, these results reveal that selective stimulation of the M2-DLS pathway can become an effective therapeutic strategy in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Fernández-García
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Sara Conde-Berriozabal
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Esther García-García
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Clara Gort-Paniello
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - David Bernal-Casas
- Departament de Estadística, Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Gerardo García-Díaz Barriga
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Javier López-Gil
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Emma Muñoz-Moreno
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Guadalupe Soria
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Leticia Campa
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions biomèdiques de Barcelona (IIBB), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Mentales (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Francesc Artigas
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions biomèdiques de Barcelona (IIBB), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Mentales (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel José Rodríguez
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
| | - Jordi Alberch
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain.,Production and Validation Center of Advanced Therapies (Creatio), Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mercè Masana
- Departament de Biomedicina, Institut de Neurociències, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red sobre Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain
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12
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Polosecki P, Castro E, Rish I, Pustina D, Warner JH, Wood A, Sampaio C, Cecchi GA. Resting-state connectivity stratifies premanifest Huntington's disease by longitudinal cognitive decline rate. Sci Rep 2020; 10:1252. [PMID: 31988371 PMCID: PMC6985137 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-58074-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Patient stratification is critical for the sensitivity of clinical trials at early stages of neurodegenerative disorders. In Huntington’s disease (HD), genetic tests make cognitive, motor and brain imaging measurements possible before symptom manifestation (pre-HD). We evaluated pre-HD stratification models based on single visit resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) data that assess observed longitudinal motor and cognitive change rates from the multisite Track-On HD cohort (74 pre-HD, 79 control participants). We computed longitudinal performance change on 10 tasks (including visits from the preceding TRACK-HD study when available), as well as functional connectivity density (FCD) maps in single rs-fMRI visits, which showed high test-retest reliability. We assigned pre-HD subjects to subgroups of fast, intermediate, and slow change along single tasks or combinations of them, correcting for expectations based on aging; and trained FCD-based classifiers to distinguish fast- from slow-progressing individuals. For robustness, models were validated across imaging sites. Stratification models distinguished fast- from slow-changing participants and provided continuous assessments of decline applicable to the whole pre-HD population, relying on previously-neglected white matter functional signals. These results suggest novel correlates of early deterioration and a robust stratification strategy where a single MRI measurement provides an estimate of multiple ongoing longitudinal changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Polosecki
- IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, Yorktown, NY, USA.
| | - Eduardo Castro
- IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, Yorktown, NY, USA
| | - Irina Rish
- IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, Yorktown, NY, USA
| | | | | | - Andrew Wood
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, Princeton, NJ, USA
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13
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Pini L, Jacquemot C, Cagnin A, Meneghello F, Semenza C, Mantini D, Vallesi A. Aberrant brain network connectivity in presymptomatic and manifest Huntington's disease: A systematic review. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:256-269. [PMID: 31532053 PMCID: PMC7268025 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 07/29/2019] [Accepted: 08/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs‐fMRI) has the potential to shed light on the pathophysiological mechanisms of Huntington's disease (HD), paving the way to new therapeutic interventions. A systematic literature review was conducted in three online databases according to PRISMA guidelines, using keywords for HD, functional connectivity, and rs‐fMRI. We included studies investigating connectivity in presymptomatic (pre‐HD) and manifest HD gene carriers compared to healthy controls, implementing seed‐based connectivity, independent component analysis, regional property, and graph analysis approaches. Visual network showed reduced connectivity in manifest HD, while network/areas underpinning motor functions were consistently altered in both manifest HD and pre‐HD, showing disease stage‐dependent changes. Cognitive networks underlying executive and attentional functions showed divergent anterior–posterior alterations, possibly reflecting compensatory mechanisms. The involvement of these networks in pre‐HD is still unclear. In conclusion, aberrant connectivity of the sensory‐motor network is observed in the early stage of HD while, as pathology spreads, other networks might be affected, such as the visual and executive/attentional networks. Moreover, sensory‐motor and executive networks exhibit hyper‐ and hypo‐connectivity patterns following different spatiotemporal trajectories. These findings could potentially help to implement future huntingtin‐lowering interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Pini
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Charlotte Jacquemot
- Département d'Etudes Cognitives, Ecole Normale Supérieure-PSL University, Paris, France.,Laboratoire de NeuroPsychologie Interventionnelle, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, Institut National de la Santé et Recherche Médical (INSERM) U955, Equipe 01, Créteil, France.,Faculté de Médecine, Université Paris Est Créteil, Créteil, France
| | - Annachiara Cagnin
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Francesca Meneghello
- Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Carlo Semenza
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.,Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Dante Mantini
- Research Center for Motor Control and Neuroplasticity, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Brain Imaging and Neural Dynamics Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Antonino Vallesi
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.,Brain Imaging and Neural Dynamics Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
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14
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Kronenbuerger M, Hua J, Bang JYA, Ultz KE, Miao X, Zhang X, Pekar JJ, van Zijl PCM, Duan W, Margolis RL, Ross CA. Differential Changes in Functional Connectivity of Striatum-Prefrontal and Striatum-Motor Circuits in Premanifest Huntington's Disease. NEURODEGENER DIS 2019; 19:78-87. [PMID: 31412344 DOI: 10.1159/000501616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2019] [Accepted: 06/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. The striatum is one of the first brain regions that show detectable atrophy in HD. Previous studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at 3 tesla (3 T) revealed reduced functional connectivity between striatum and motor cortex in the prodromal period of HD. Neuroanatomical and neurophysiological studies have suggested segregated corticostriatal pathways with distinct loops involving different cortical regions, which may be investigated using fMRI at an ultra-high field (7 T) with enhanced sensitivity compared to lower fields. OBJECTIVES We performed fMRI at 7 T to assess functional connectivity between the striatum and several chosen cortical areas including the motor and prefrontal cortex, in order to better understand brain changes in the striatum-cortical pathways. METHOD 13 manifest subjects (age 51 ± 13 years, cytosine-adenine-guanine [CAG] repeat 45 ± 5, Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale [UHDRS] motor score 32 ± 17), 8 subjects in the close-to-onset premanifest period (age 38 ± 10 years, CAG repeat 44 ± 2, UHDRS motor score 8 ± 2), 11 subjects in the far-from-onset premanifest period (age 38 ± 11 years, CAG repeat 42 ± 2, UHDRS motor score 1 ± 2), and 16 healthy controls (age 44 ± 15 years) were studied. The functional connectivity between the striatum and several cortical areas was measured by resting state fMRI at 7 T and analyzed in all participants. RESULTS Compared to controls, functional connectivity between striatum and premotor area, supplementary motor area, inferior frontal as well as middle frontal regions was altered in HD (all p values <0.001). Specifically, decreased striatum-motor connectivity but increased striatum-prefrontal connectivity were found in premanifest HD subjects. Altered functional connectivity correlated consistently with genetic burden, but not with clinical scores. CONCLUSIONS Differential changes in functional connectivity of striatum-prefrontal and striatum-motor circuits can be found in early and premanifest HD. This may imply a compensatory mechanism, where additional cortical regions are recruited to subserve functions that have been impaired due to HD pathology. Our results suggest the potential value of functional connectivity as a marker for future clinical trials in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Kronenbuerger
- Division of Movement Disorders, Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, .,Department of Neurology, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany,
| | - Jun Hua
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Jee Y A Bang
- Division of Movement Disorders, Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Kia E Ultz
- Division of Movement Disorders, Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Xinyuan Miao
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Xiaoyu Zhang
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - James J Pekar
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Peter C M van Zijl
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Wenzhen Duan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Russell L Margolis
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Christopher A Ross
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.,Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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15
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Espinoza FA, Liu J, Ciarochi J, Turner JA, Vergara VM, Caprihan A, Misiura M, Johnson HJ, Long JD, Bockholt JH, Paulsen JS, Calhoun VD. Dynamic functional network connectivity in Huntington's disease and its associations with motor and cognitive measures. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:1955-1968. [PMID: 30618191 PMCID: PMC6865767 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2018] [Revised: 12/12/2018] [Accepted: 12/14/2018] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Dynamic functional network connectivity (dFNC) is an expansion of traditional, static FNC that measures connectivity variation among brain networks throughout scan duration. We used a large resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) sample from the PREDICT-HD study (N = 183 Huntington disease gene mutation carriers [HDgmc] and N = 78 healthy control [HC] participants) to examine whole-brain dFNC and its associations with CAG repeat length as well as the product of scaled CAG length and age, a variable representing disease burden. We also tested for relationships between functional connectivity and motor and cognitive measurements. Group independent component analysis was applied to rs-fMRI data to obtain whole-brain resting state networks. FNC was defined as the correlation between RSN time-courses. Dynamic FNC behavior was captured using a sliding time window approach, and FNC results from each window were assigned to four clusters representing FNC states, using a k-means clustering algorithm. HDgmc individuals spent significantly more time in State-1 (the state with the weakest FNC pattern) compared to HC. However, overall HC individuals showed more FNC dynamism than HDgmc. Significant associations between FNC states and genetic and clinical variables were also identified. In FNC State-4 (the one that most resembled static FNC), HDgmc exhibited significantly decreased connectivity between the putamen and medial prefrontal cortex compared to HC, and this was significantly associated with cognitive performance. In FNC State-1, disease burden in HDgmc participants was significantly associated with connectivity between the postcentral gyrus and posterior cingulate cortex, as well as between the inferior occipital gyrus and posterior parietal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flor A. Espinoza
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
| | - Jingyu Liu
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
| | - Jennifer Ciarochi
- Department of Psychology and NeuroscienceGeorgia State UniversityAtlantaGeorgia
| | - Jessica A. Turner
- Department of Psychology and NeuroscienceGeorgia State UniversityAtlantaGeorgia
| | - Victor M. Vergara
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
| | - Arvind Caprihan
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
| | - Maria Misiura
- Department of Psychology and NeuroscienceGeorgia State UniversityAtlantaGeorgia
| | - Hans J. Johnson
- Department of Electrical and Computer EngineeringUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of PsychiatryUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | - Jeffrey D. Long
- Department of PsychiatryUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of BiostatisticsUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | - Jeremy H. Bockholt
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
| | | | - Vince D. Calhoun
- Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research NetworkAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
- Department of Psychology and NeuroscienceGeorgia State UniversityAtlantaGeorgia
- Department of Electrical and Computer EngineeringUniversity of New MexicoAlbuquerqueNew Mexico
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16
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Chang WT, Puspitasari F, Garcia-Miralles M, Yeow LY, Tay HC, Koh KB, Tan LJ, Pouladi MA, Chuang KH. Connectomic imaging reveals Huntington-related pathological and pharmaceutical effects in a mouse model. NMR IN BIOMEDICINE 2018; 31:e4007. [PMID: 30260561 DOI: 10.1002/nbm.4007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2018] [Revised: 07/05/2018] [Accepted: 07/31/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies suggest that neurodegenerative diseases could affect brain structure and function in disease-specific network patterns; however, how spontaneous activity affects structural covariance network (SC) is not clear. We hypothesized that hyper-excitability in Huntington disease (HD) disrupts the coordinated structural and functional connectivity, and treatment with memantine helps to reduce excitotoxicity and normalize the connectivity. MRI was conducted to measure somatosensory activation, resting-state functional-connectivity (rsFC), SC, amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and ALFF covariance (ALFFC) in the YAC128 mouse model of HD. We found somatosensory activation was unchanged but the subcortical ALFF was increased in HD mice, indicating subcortical but not cortical hyperactivity. The reduced sensorimotor rsFC but spared hippocampal and default mode networks in the HD mice was consistent with the more pronounced impairment in motor function compared with cognitive performance. The disease suppressed SC globally and reduced ALFFC in the basal ganglia network as well as its anti-correlation with the default mode network. By comparing these connectivity measures, we found that the originally coupled rsFC-SC relationship was impaired whereas SC-ALFFC correlation was increased by HD, suggesting disease facilitated covariation of brain volume and activity amplitude but not neural synchrony. The comparison with mono-synaptic axonal projection supports the hypothesis that rsFC, but not SC or ALFFC, is highly dependent on structural connectivity under healthy conditions. Treatment with memantine had a strong effect on normalizing the SC and reducing ALFF while slightly increasing other connectivity measures and restoring the rsFC-SC coupling, which is consistent with its effect on alleviating hyper-excitability and improving the coordinated neural growth. These results indicate that HD affects the cerebral structure-function relationship which could be partially reverted by NMDA antagonism. These connectivity measures provide unique insights into pathological and pharmaceutical effects in brain circuitry, and could be translatable biomarkers for evaluating drug effect and refining its efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Tang Chang
- Singapore BioImaging Consortium, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Fiftarina Puspitasari
- Singapore BioImaging Consortium, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Marta Garcia-Miralles
- Translational Laboratory in Genetic Medicine, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ling Yun Yeow
- Singapore BioImaging Consortium, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Hui-Chien Tay
- Singapore BioImaging Consortium, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Katrianne Bethia Koh
- Translational Laboratory in Genetic Medicine, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Liang Juin Tan
- Translational Laboratory in Genetic Medicine, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Mahmoud A Pouladi
- Translational Laboratory in Genetic Medicine, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Kai-Hsiang Chuang
- Singapore BioImaging Consortium, Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore, Singapore
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
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17
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Coppen EM, van der Grond J, Hafkemeijer A, Barkey Wolf JJH, Roos RAC. Structural and functional changes of the visual cortex in early Huntington's disease. Hum Brain Mapp 2018; 39:4776-4786. [PMID: 30144208 PMCID: PMC6866293 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24322] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2018] [Revised: 06/19/2018] [Accepted: 07/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an autosomal-dominant inherited neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor disturbances, psychiatric disturbances, and cognitive impairment. Visual cognitive deficits and atrophy of the posterior cerebral cortex are additionally present in early disease stages. This study aimed to assess the extent of structural and functional brain alterations of the visual cortex in HD gene carriers using different neuroimaging modalities. Structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging data were acquired from 18 healthy controls, 21 premanifest, and 20 manifest HD gene carriers. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis and cortical thickness measurements were performed to assess structural changes in the visual cortex. Brain function was measured by assessing neuronal connectivity changes in response to visual stimulation and at rest in visual resting-state networks. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between visual cognitive function and structural imaging measures. Compared to controls, pronounced atrophy and decreased neuronal function at rest were present in associative visual cortices in manifest HD. The primary visual cortex did not show group differences in cortical thickness and in vascular activity after visual stimulation. Thinning of the associative visual cortex was related to worse visual perceptual function. Premanifest HD gene carriers did not show any differences in brain structure or function compared to controls. This study improves the knowledge on posterior brain changes in HD, as our findings suggest that the primary visual cortex remains preserved, both structurally and functionally, while atrophy of associative visual cortices is present in early HD and linked to clinical visual deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M. Coppen
- Department of NeurologyLeiden University Medical CenterLeidenthe Netherlands
| | | | - Anne Hafkemeijer
- Department of RadiologyLeiden University Medical CenterLeidenthe Netherlands
- Department of Methodology and Statistics, Institute of PsychologyLeiden UniversityLeidenthe Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and CognitionLeiden UniversityLeidenthe Netherlands
| | - Jurriaan J. H. Barkey Wolf
- Department of RadiologyLeiden University Medical CenterLeidenthe Netherlands
- Department of Molecular EpidemiologyLeiden University Medical CenterLeidenthe Netherlands
| | - Raymund A. C. Roos
- Department of NeurologyLeiden University Medical CenterLeidenthe Netherlands
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18
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Abstract
Even before the success of combined positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT), the neuroimaging community was conceiving the idea to integrate the positron emission tomography (PET), with very high molecular quantitative data but low spatial resolution, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), with high spatial resolution. Several technical limitations have delayed the use of a hybrid scanner in neuroimaging studies, including the full integration of the PET detector ring within the MRI system, the optimization of data acquisition, and the implementation of reliable methods for PET attenuation, motion correction, and joint image reconstruction. To be valid and useful in clinical and research settings, this instrument should be able to simultaneously acquire PET and MRI, and generate quantitative parametric PET images comparable to PET-CT. While post hoc co-registration of combined PET and MRI data acquired separately became the most reliable technique for the generation of "fused" PET-MRI images, only hybrid PET-MRI approach allows merging these measurements naturally and correlating them in a temporal manner. Furthermore, hybrid PET-MRI represents the most accurate tool to investigate in vivo the interplay between molecular and functional aspects of brain pathophysiology. Hybrid PET-MRI technology is still in the early stages in the movement disorders field, due to the limited availability of scanners with integrated optimized methodological models. This technology is ideally suited to investigate interactions between resting-state functional/arterial spin labeling MRI and [18F]FDG PET glucose metabolism in the evaluation of the brain "hubs" particularly vulnerable to neurodegeneration, areas with a high degree of connectivity and associated with an efficient synaptic neurotransmission. In Parkinson's disease, hybrid PET-MRI is also the ideal instrument to deeper explore the relationship between resting-state functional MRI and dopamine release at [11C]raclopride PET challenge, in the identification of early drug-naïve Parkinson's disease patients at higher risk of motor complications and in the evaluation of the efficacy of novel neuroprotective treatment able to restore at the same time the altered resting state and the release of dopamine. In this chapter, we discuss the key methodological aspects of hybrid PET-MRI; the evidence in movement disorders of the key resting-state functional and perfusion MRI; [18F]FDG PET and [11C]raclopride PET challenge studies; the potential advantages of using hybrid PET-MRI to investigate the pathophysiology of movement disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. Future directions of hybrid PET-MRI will be discussed alongside with up-to-date technological innovations on hybrid systems.
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19
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Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Huntington's Disease. INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF NEUROBIOLOGY 2018; 142:381-408. [PMID: 30409260 DOI: 10.1016/bs.irn.2018.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Huntington's disease is an inherited neurodegenerative condition characterized by motor dysfunction, cognitive impairment and neuropsychiatric disturbance. The effects of the underlying pathology on brain morphology are relatively well understood. Numerous structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) studies have demonstrated macrostructural change with widespread striatal and cortical atrophy and microstructural white matter loss in premanifest and manifest HD gene carriers. However, disease effects on brain function are less well characterized. Functional MRI provides an opportunity to examine differences in brain activity either in response to a particular task or in the brain at rest. There is increasing evidence that HD gene carriers exhibit altered activation patterns and functional connectivity between brain regions in response to the neurodegenerative process. Here we review the growing literature in this area and critically evaluate the utility of this imaging modality.
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20
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Fazio P, Paucar M, Svenningsson P, Varrone A. Novel Imaging Biomarkers for Huntington's Disease and Other Hereditary Choreas. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2018; 18:85. [PMID: 30291526 PMCID: PMC6182636 DOI: 10.1007/s11910-018-0890-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF THE REVIEW Imaging biomarkers for neurodegenerative disorders are primarily developed with the goal to aid diagnosis, to monitor disease progression, and to assess the efficacy of disease-modifying therapies in support to clinical outcomes that may either show limited sensitivity or need extended time for their evaluation. This article will review the most recent concepts and findings in the field of neuroimaging applied to Huntington's disease and Huntington-like syndromes. Emphasis will be given to the discussion of potential pharmacodynamic biomarkers for clinical trials in Huntington's disease (HD) and of neuroimaging tools that can be used as diagnostic biomarkers in HD-like syndromes. RECENT FINDINGS Several magnetic resonance (MR) and positron emission tomography (PET) molecular imaging tools have been identified as potential pharmacodynamic biomarkers and others are in the pipeline after preclinical validation. MRI and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET can be considered useful supportive diagnostic tools for the differentiation of other HD-like syndromes. New trials in HD have the primary goal to lower mutant huntingtin (mHTT) protein levels in the brain in order to reduce or alter the progression of the disease. MR and PET molecular imaging markers have been developed as tools to monitor disease progression and to evaluate treatment outcomes of disease-modifying trials in HD. These markers could be used alone or in combination for detecting structural and pharmacodynamic changes potentially associated with the lowering of mHTT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrik Fazio
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm County Council, R5:02 Karolinska University Hospital, SE-171 76, Stockholm, Sweden.
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Martin Paucar
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Per Svenningsson
- Department of Neurology, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Andrea Varrone
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm County Council, R5:02 Karolinska University Hospital, SE-171 76, Stockholm, Sweden
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21
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Sarappa C, Salvatore E, Filla A, Cocozza S, Russo CV, Saccà F, Brunetti A, De Michele G, Quarantelli M. Functional MRI signal fluctuations highlight altered resting brain activity in Huntington's disease. Brain Imaging Behav 2018; 11:1459-1469. [PMID: 27734308 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-016-9630-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The fractional Amplitude of Low Frequency Fluctuations (fALFF) and the degree of local synchronization (Regional Homogeneity - ReHo) of resting-state BOLD signal have been suggested to map spontaneous neuronal activity and local functional connectivity, respectively. We compared voxelwise, independent of atrophy, the fALFF and ReHo patterns of 11 presymptomatic (ps-HD) and 28 symptomatic (sHD) Huntington's disease mutation carriers, with those of 40 normal volunteers, and tested their possible correlations with the motor and cognitive subscores of the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale. In sHD patients, fALFF was mainly reduced bilaterally in parietal lobes (right precuneus being already affected in psHD), and in superior frontal gyri, and increased bilaterally in cerebellar lobules VI, VIII and IX, as well as in the right inferior temporal gyrus. In sHD, and to a lesser extent in psHD, ReHo was bilaterally reduced in putamina, cerebellar lobules III to VI, and superior medial frontal gyri, and increased in both psHD and sHD in fronto-basal cortices, and in the right temporal lobe. fALFF correlated inversely with cognitive scores in lobule IX of the cerebellum (mainly with total Stroop score, p < 0.0001), and in the medial portions of both thalami. These results are consistent with a reduced neuronal activity in the cortical components of the executive networks, known to be affected in Huntington's Disease, and with reduced local functional integration in subcortical and cerebellar components of the sensori-motor network. Cerebellar clusters of significant correlation of fALFF with executive function scores may be related to compensatory mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Sarappa
- Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 10, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Elena Salvatore
- Department of Neurosciences, Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 17, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Alessandro Filla
- Department of Neurosciences, Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 17, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Sirio Cocozza
- Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 10, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Cinzia Valeria Russo
- Department of Neurosciences, Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 17, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Francesco Saccà
- Department of Neurosciences, Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 17, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Arturo Brunetti
- Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 10, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Giuseppe De Michele
- Department of Neurosciences, Reproductive and Odontostomatological Sciences, University "Federico II", Edificio 17, Via S. Pansini 5, 80131, Naples, Italy
| | - Mario Quarantelli
- Biostructure and Bioimaging Institute, National Research Council, Via T. De Amicis 95, 80145, Naples, Italy.
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22
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Coppen EM, van der Grond J, Hart EP, Lakke EAJF, Roos RAC. The visual cortex and visual cognition in Huntington's disease: An overview of current literature. Behav Brain Res 2018; 351:63-74. [PMID: 29792890 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2018.05.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2018] [Revised: 05/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The processing of visual stimuli from retina to higher cortical areas has been extensively studied in the human brain. In Huntington's disease (HD), an inherited neurodegenerative disorder, it is suggested that visual processing deficits are present in addition to more characteristic signs such as motor disturbances, cognitive dysfunction, and behavioral changes. Visual deficits are clinically important because they influence overall cognitive performance and have implications for daily functioning. The aim of this review is to summarize current literature on clinical visual deficits, visual cognitive impairment, and underlying visual cortical changes in HD patients. A literature search was conducted using the electronic database of PubMed/Medline. This review shows that changes of the visual system in patients with HD were not the primary focus of currently published studies. Still, early atrophy and alterations of the posterior cerebral cortex was frequently observed, primarily in the associative visual cortical areas such as the lingual and fusiform gyri, and lateral occipital cortex. Changes were even present in the premanifest phase, before clinical onset of motor symptoms, suggesting a primary region for cortical degeneration in HD. Although impairments in visuospatial processing and visual perception were reported in early disease stages, heterogeneous cognitive batteries were used, making a direct comparison between studies difficult. The use of a standardized battery of visual cognitive tasks might therefore provide more detailed information regarding the extent of impairments in specific visual domains. Further research could provide more insight into clinical, functional, and pathophysiological changes of the visual pathway in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M Coppen
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Jeroen van der Grond
- Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Ellen P Hart
- Centre for Human Drug Research, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Egbert A J F Lakke
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Raymund A C Roos
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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23
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Hohenfeld C, Werner CJ, Reetz K. Resting-state connectivity in neurodegenerative disorders: Is there potential for an imaging biomarker? Neuroimage Clin 2018; 18:849-870. [PMID: 29876270 PMCID: PMC5988031 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2018.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2017] [Revised: 02/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Biomarkers in whichever modality are tremendously important in diagnosing of disease, tracking disease progression and clinical trials. This applies in particular for disorders with a long disease course including pre-symptomatic stages, in which only subtle signs of clinical progression can be observed. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) biomarkers hold particular promise due to their relative ease of use, cost-effectiveness and non-invasivity. Studies measuring resting-state functional MR connectivity have become increasingly common during recent years and are well established in neuroscience and related fields. Its increasing application does of course also include clinical settings and therein neurodegenerative diseases. In the present review, we critically summarise the state of the literature on resting-state functional connectivity as measured with functional MRI in neurodegenerative disorders. In addition to an overview of the results, we briefly outline the methods applied to the concept of resting-state functional connectivity. While there are many different neurodegenerative disorders cumulatively affecting a substantial number of patients, for most of them studies on resting-state fMRI are lacking. Plentiful amounts of papers are available for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), but only few works being available for the less common neurodegenerative diseases. This allows some conclusions on the potential of resting-state fMRI acting as a biomarker for the aforementioned two diseases, but only tentative statements for the others. For AD, the literature contains a relatively strong consensus regarding an impairment of the connectivity of the default mode network compared to healthy individuals. However, for AD there is no considerable documentation on how that alteration develops longitudinally with the progression of the disease. For PD, the available research points towards alterations of connectivity mainly in limbic and motor related regions and networks, but drawing conclusions for PD has to be done with caution due to a relative heterogeneity of the disease. For rare neurodegenerative diseases, no clear conclusions can be drawn due to the few published results. Nevertheless, summarising available data points towards characteristic connectivity alterations in Huntington's disease, frontotemporal dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, multiple systems atrophy and the spinocerebellar ataxias. Overall at this point in time, the data on AD are most promising towards the eventual use of resting-state fMRI as an imaging biomarker, although there remain issues such as reproducibility of results and a lack of data demonstrating longitudinal changes. Improved methods providing more precise classifications as well as resting-state network changes that are sensitive to disease progression or therapeutic intervention are highly desirable, before routine clinical use could eventually become a reality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Hohenfeld
- RWTH Aachen University, Department of Neurology, Aachen, Germany; JARA-BRAIN Institute Molecular Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH and RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Cornelius J Werner
- RWTH Aachen University, Department of Neurology, Aachen, Germany; RWTH Aachen University, Section Interdisciplinary Geriatrics, Aachen, Germany
| | - Kathrin Reetz
- RWTH Aachen University, Department of Neurology, Aachen, Germany; JARA-BRAIN Institute Molecular Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH and RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
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24
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Espinoza FA, Turner JA, Vergara VM, Miller RL, Mennigen E, Liu J, Misiura MB, Ciarochi J, Johnson HJ, Long JD, Bockholt HJ, Magnotta VA, Paulsen JS, Calhoun VD. Whole-Brain Connectivity in a Large Study of Huntington's Disease Gene Mutation Carriers and Healthy Controls. Brain Connect 2018; 8:166-178. [PMID: 29291624 DOI: 10.1089/brain.2017.0538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited brain disorder characterized by progressive motor, cognitive, and behavioral dysfunctions. It is caused by abnormally large trinucleotide cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) repeat expansions on exon 1 of the Huntingtin gene. CAG repeat length (CAG-RL) inversely correlates with an earlier age of onset. Region-based studies have shown that HD gene mutation carrier (HDgmc) individuals (CAG-RL ≥36) present functional connectivity alterations in subcortical (SC) and default mode networks. In this analysis, we expand on previous HD studies by investigating associations between CAG-RL and connectivity in the whole brain, as well as between CAG-dependent connectivity and motor and cognitive performances. We used group-independent component analysis on resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scans of 261 individuals (183 HDgmc and 78 healthy controls) from the PREDICT-HD study, to obtain whole-brain resting state networks (RSNs). Regression analysis was applied within and between RSNs connectivity (functional network connectivity [FNC]) to identify CAG-RL associations. Connectivity within the putamen RSN is negatively correlated with CAG-RL. The FNC between putamen and insula decreases with increasing CAG-RL, and also shows significant associations with motor and cognitive measures. The FNC between calcarine and middle frontal gyri increased with CAG-RL. In contrast, FNC in other visual (VIS) networks declined with increasing CAG-RL. In addition to observed effects in SC areas known to be related to HD, our study identifies a strong presence of alterations in VIS regions less commonly observed in previous reports and provides a step forward in understanding FNC dysfunction in HDgmc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flor A Espinoza
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico
| | - Jessica A Turner
- 2 Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Georgia State University , Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Victor M Vergara
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico
| | - Robyn L Miller
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico
| | - Eva Mennigen
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico
| | - Jingyu Liu
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico
| | - Maria B Misiura
- 2 Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Georgia State University , Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Jennifer Ciarochi
- 2 Departments of Psychology and Neuroscience, Georgia State University , Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Hans J Johnson
- 3 Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa , Iowa City, Iowa
| | - Jeffrey D Long
- 3 Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa , Iowa City, Iowa.,4 Department of Biostatistics, University of Iowa , Iowa City, Iowa
| | - Henry J Bockholt
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico .,3 Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa , Iowa City, Iowa
| | | | - Jane S Paulsen
- 3 Department of Psychiatry, Neurology, Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa , Iowa City, Iowa
| | - Vince D Calhoun
- 1 Department of Translational Neuroscience, The Mind Research Network , Albuquerque, New Mexico .,6 Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico , Albuquerque, New Mexico
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25
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Mason SL, Daws RE, Soreq E, Johnson EB, Scahill RI, Tabrizi SJ, Barker RA, Hampshire A. Predicting clinical diagnosis in Huntington's disease: An imaging polymarker. Ann Neurol 2018; 83:532-543. [PMID: 29405351 PMCID: PMC5900832 DOI: 10.1002/ana.25171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Revised: 02/01/2018] [Accepted: 02/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Huntington's disease (HD) gene carriers can be identified before clinical diagnosis; however, statistical models for predicting when overt motor symptoms will manifest are too imprecise to be useful at the level of the individual. Perfecting this prediction is integral to the search for disease modifying therapies. This study aimed to identify an imaging marker capable of reliably predicting real-life clinical diagnosis in HD. METHOD A multivariate machine learning approach was applied to resting-state and structural magnetic resonance imaging scans from 19 premanifest HD gene carriers (preHD, 8 of whom developed clinical disease in the 5 years postscanning) and 21 healthy controls. A classification model was developed using cross-group comparisons between preHD and controls, and within the preHD group in relation to "estimated" and "actual" proximity to disease onset. Imaging measures were modeled individually, and combined, and permutation modeling robustly tested classification accuracy. RESULTS Classification performance for preHDs versus controls was greatest when all measures were combined. The resulting polymarker predicted converters with high accuracy, including those who were not expected to manifest in that time scale based on the currently adopted statistical models. INTERPRETATION We propose that a holistic multivariate machine learning treatment of brain abnormalities in the premanifest phase can be used to accurately identify those patients within 5 years of developing motor features of HD, with implications for prognostication and preclinical trials. Ann Neurol 2018;83:532-543.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah L. Mason
- John Van Geest Centre for Brain RepairUniversity of CambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Richard E. Daws
- The Computational, Cognitive & Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (CNL), Division of Brain SciencesImperial College LondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Eyal Soreq
- The Computational, Cognitive & Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (CNL), Division of Brain SciencesImperial College LondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Eileanoir B. Johnson
- Huntington's Disease Research CentreUCL Institute of Neurology, University College LondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Rachael I. Scahill
- Huntington's Disease Research CentreUCL Institute of Neurology, University College LondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Sarah J. Tabrizi
- Huntington's Disease Research CentreUCL Institute of Neurology, University College LondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Roger A. Barker
- John Van Geest Centre for Brain RepairUniversity of CambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Department of Clinical NeuroscienceUniversity of CambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Adam Hampshire
- The Computational, Cognitive & Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (CNL), Division of Brain SciencesImperial College LondonUnited Kingdom
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26
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Eddy CM, Rickards HE, Hansen PC. Through your eyes or mine? The neural correlates of mental state recognition in Huntington's disease. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 39:1354-1366. [PMID: 29250867 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2017] [Revised: 11/14/2017] [Accepted: 12/07/2017] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) can impair social cognition. This study investigated whether patients with HD exhibit neural differences to healthy controls when they are considering mental and physical states relating to the static expressions of human eyes. Thirty-two patients with HD and 28 age-matched controls were scanned with fMRI during two versions of the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Task: The standard version requiring mental state judgments, and a comparison version requiring judgments about age. HD was associated with behavioral deficits on only the mental state eyes task. Contrasting the two versions of the eyes task (mental state > age judgment) revealed hypoactivation within left middle frontal gyrus and supramarginal gyrus in HD. Subgroup analyses comparing premanifest HD patients to age-matched controls revealed reduced activity in right supramarginal gyrus and increased activity in anterior cingulate during mental state recognition in these patients, while manifest HD was associated with hypoactivity in left insula and left supramarginal gyrus. When controlling for the effects of healthy aging, manifest patients exhibited declining activation within areas including right temporal pole. Our findings provide compelling evidence for a selective impairment of internal emotional status when patients with HD appraise facial features in order to make social judgements. Differential activity in temporal and anterior cingulate cortices may suggest that poor emotion regulation and emotional egocentricity underlie impaired mental state recognition in premanifest patients, while more extensive mental state recognition impairments in manifest disease reflect dysfunction in neural substrates underlying executive functions, and the experience and interpretation of emotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clare M Eddy
- BSMHFT National Centre for Mental Health, Birmingham, United Kingdom.,College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Hugh E Rickards
- BSMHFT National Centre for Mental Health, Birmingham, United Kingdom.,College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Peter C Hansen
- Birmingham University Imaging Centre and School of Psychology, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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Resting-state functional MRI reveals altered brain connectivity and its correlation with motor dysfunction in a mouse model of Huntington's disease. Sci Rep 2017; 7:16742. [PMID: 29196686 PMCID: PMC5711837 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-17026-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant inherited neurodegenerative disorder, and no cure is available currently. Treatment of HD is likely to be most beneficial in the early, possibly pre-manifestation stage. The challenge is to determine the best time for intervention and evaluate putative efficacy in the absence of clinical symptoms. Resting-state functional MRI may represent a promising tool to develop biomarker reflecting early neuronal dysfunction in HD brain, because it can examine multiple brain networks without confounding effects of cognitive ability, which makes the resting-state fMRI promising as a translational bridge between preclinical study in animal models and clinical findings in HD patients. In this study, we examined brain regional connectivity and its correlation to brain atrophy, as well as motor function in the 18-week-old N171-82Q HD mice. HD mice exhibited significantly altered functional connectivity in multiple networks. Particularly, the weaker intra-striatum connectivity was positively correlated with striatal atrophy, while striatum-retrosplenial cortex connectivity is negatively correlated with striatal atrophy. The resting-state brain regional connectivity had no significant correlation with motor deficits in HD mice. Our results suggest that altered brain connectivity detected by resting-state fMRI might serve as an early disease biomarker in HD.
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28
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Progress in developing transgenic monkey model for Huntington's disease. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2017; 125:401-417. [PMID: 29127484 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-017-1803-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 10/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder that has no cure. Although treatments can often be given to relieve symptoms, the neuropathology associated with HD cannot be stopped or reversed. HD is characterized by degeneration of the striatum and associated pathways that leads to impairment in motor and cognitive functions as well as psychiatric disturbances. Although cell and rodent models for HD exist, longitudinal study in a transgenic HD nonhuman primate (i.e., rhesus macaque; HD monkeys) shows high similarity in its progression with human patients. Progressive brain atrophy and changes in white matter integrity examined by magnetic resonance imaging are coherent with the decline in cognitive behaviors related to corticostriatal functions and neuropathology. HD monkeys also express higher anxiety and irritability/aggression similar to human HD patients that other model systems have not yet replicated. While a comparative model approach is critical for advancing our understanding of HD pathogenesis, HD monkeys could provide a unique platform for preclinical studies and long-term assessment of translatable outcome measures. This review summarizes the progress in the development of the transgenic HD monkey model and the opportunities for advancing HD preclinical research.
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Mestre TA, Sampaio C. Huntington Disease: Linking Pathogenesis to the Development of Experimental Therapeutics. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2017; 17:18. [PMID: 28265888 DOI: 10.1007/s11910-017-0711-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Huntington disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative condition caused by a CAG trinucleotide expansion in the huntingtin gene. At present, the HD field is experiencing exciting times with the assessment for the first time in human subjects of interventions aimed at core disease mechanisms. Out of a portfolio of interventions that claim a potential disease-modifying effect in HD, the target huntingtin has more robust validation. In this review, we discuss the spectrum of huntingtin-lowering therapies that are currently being considered. We provide a critical appraisal of the validation of huntingtin as a drug target, describing the advantages, challenges, and limitations of the proposed therapeutic interventions. The development of these new therapies relies strongly on the knowledge of HD pathogenesis and the ability to translate this knowledge into validated pharmacodynamic biomarkers. Altogether, the goal is to support a rational drug development that is ethical and cost-effective. Among the pharmacodynamic biomarkers under development, the quantification of mutant huntingtin in the cerebral spinal fluid and PET imaging targeting huntingtin or phosphodiesterase 10A deserve special attention. Huntingtin-lowering therapeutics are eagerly awaited as the first interventions that may be able to change the course of HD in a meaningful way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiago A Mestre
- Parkinson's Disease and Movement Disorders Center, Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, The University of Ottawa Brain and Mind Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Cristina Sampaio
- CHDI Management/CHDI Foundation, 155 Village Boulevard, Suite 200, Princeton, USA. .,Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal.
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30
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Piano C, Imperatori C, Losurdo A, Bentivoglio AR, Cortelli P, Della Marca G. Sleep-related modifications of EEG connectivity in the sensory-motor networks in Huntington Disease: An eLORETA study and review of the literature. Clin Neurophysiol 2017; 128:1354-1363. [DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2016.11.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2016] [Revised: 11/22/2016] [Accepted: 11/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Ehrlich DJ, Walker RH. Functional neuroimaging and chorea: a systematic review. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MOVEMENT DISORDERS 2017. [PMID: 28649394 PMCID: PMC5479019 DOI: 10.1186/s40734-017-0056-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Chorea is a hyperkinetic movement disorder consisting of involuntary irregular, flowing movements of the trunk, neck or face. Although Huntington’s disease is the most common cause of chorea in adults, chorea can also result from many other neurodegenerative, metabolic, and autoimmune conditions. While the pathophysiology of these different conditions is quite variable, recent advances in functional imaging have enabled the development of new methods for analysis of brain activity and neuronal dysfunction. In this paper we review the growing body of functional imaging data that has been performed in chorea syndromes and identify particular trends, which can be used to better understand the underlying network changes within the basal ganglia. While it can be challenging to identify whether changes are primary, secondary, or compensatory, identification of these trends can ultimately be useful in diagnostic testing and treatment in many of the conditions that cause chorea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debra J Ehrlich
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 5 East 98th Street, 1st Floor, Box 1637, New York, NY 10029 USA
| | - Ruth H Walker
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 5 East 98th Street, 1st Floor, Box 1637, New York, NY 10029 USA.,Department of Neurology, James J Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 130 West Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468 USA
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Sánchez-Castañeda C, de Pasquale F, Caravasso CF, Marano M, Maffi S, Migliore S, Sabatini U, Squitieri F. Resting-state connectivity and modulated somatomotor and default-mode networks in Huntington disease. CNS Neurosci Ther 2017; 23:488-497. [PMID: 28464463 DOI: 10.1111/cns.12701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2016] [Revised: 03/10/2017] [Accepted: 03/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
AIMS To analyze brain functional connectivity in the somatomotor and default-mode networks (DMNs) of patients with Huntington disease (HD), its relationship with gray matter (GM) volume loss, and functional changes after pridopidine treatment. METHODS Ten patients and ten untreated controls underwent T1-weighted imaging and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI); four patients were also assessed after 3 months of pridopidine treatment (90 mg/d). The seed-based functional connectivity patterns from the posterior cingulate cortex and the supplementary motor area (SMA), considered cortical hubs of the DMN and somatomotor networks, respectively, were computed. FMRIB Software Library voxel-based morphometry measured GM volume. RESULTS Patients had GM volume decrease in all cortical and subcortical areas of the somatomotor network with preservation of the SMA, and increased somatomotor and DMN connectivity. In DMN structures, functional connectivity impairment preceded volume loss. Pridopidine reduced the intensity of these aberrant connections. CONCLUSION The abnormal connectivity of the somatomotor and DMN observed in HD patients may represent an early dysfunction marker, as it preceded volume loss in DMN. Pridopidine reduced connectivity of these networks in all four treated patients, suggesting that connectivity is sensitive to treatment response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Sánchez-Castañeda
- Department of Medicine, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, IDIBAPS, Neuroscience Institute, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.,Radiology Department, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco de Pasquale
- Radiology Department, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy.,Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Teramo, Teramo, Italy
| | | | - Massimo Marano
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCSS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza Hospital, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
| | - Sabrina Maffi
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCSS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza Hospital, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
| | - Simone Migliore
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCSS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza Hospital, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy.,LIRH Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | - Umberto Sabatini
- Radiology Department, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy.,Neuroradiology Department, Magna Graecia University, Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Ferdinando Squitieri
- Huntington and Rare Diseases Unit, IRCSS Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza Hospital, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy
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Ciarmiello A, Giovacchini G, Giovannini E, Lazzeri P, Borsò E, Mannironi A, Mansi L. Molecular Imaging of Huntington's Disease. J Cell Physiol 2017; 232:1988-1993. [PMID: 27791273 DOI: 10.1002/jcp.25666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2016] [Accepted: 10/26/2016] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The onset and the clinical progression of Huntington Disease (HD) is influenced by several events prompted by a genetic mutation that affects several organs tissues including different regions of the brain. In the last decades years, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) helped to deepen the knowledge of neurodegenerative mechanisms that guide to clinical symptoms. Brain imaging with PET represents a tool to investigate the physiopathology occurring in the brain and it has been used to predict the age of onset of the disease and to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of new drugs. This article reviews the contribution of PET and MRI in the research field on Huntington's disease, focusing in particular on some most relevant achievements that have helped recognize the molecular changes, the clinical symptoms and evolution of the disease. J. Cell. Physiol. 232: 1988-1993, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Ciarmiello
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, La Spezia, Italy
| | - Giampiero Giovacchini
- Department of Neurology, S. Andrea Hospital, La Spezia, Italy.,Institute of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Stadtspital Triemli, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Patrizia Lazzeri
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, La Spezia, Italy
| | - Elisa Borsò
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, S. Andrea Hospital, La Spezia, Italy
| | - Antonio Mannironi
- Institute of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Stadtspital Triemli, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Luigi Mansi
- Department of Internal and Experimental Medicine Magrassi - Lanzara, Second University of Naples Napoli, Naples, Italy
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McColgan P, Gregory S, Razi A, Seunarine KK, Gargouri F, Durr A, Roos RAC, Leavitt BR, Scahill RI, Clark CA, Tabrizi SJ, Rees G, Coleman A, Decolongon J, Fan M, Petkau T, Jauffret C, Justo D, Lehericy S, Nigaud K, Valabrègue R, Choonderbeek A, Hart EPT, Hensman Moss DJ, Crawford H, Johnson E, Papoutsi M, Berna C, Reilmann R, Weber N, Stout J, Labuschagne I, Landwehrmeyer B, Orth M, Johnson H. White matter predicts functional connectivity in premanifest Huntington's disease. Ann Clin Transl Neurol 2017; 4:106-118. [PMID: 28168210 PMCID: PMC5288460 DOI: 10.1002/acn3.384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Revised: 11/22/2016] [Accepted: 11/28/2016] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Objectives The distribution of pathology in neurodegenerative disease can be predicted by the organizational characteristics of white matter in healthy brains. However, we have very little evidence for the impact these pathological changes have on brain function. Understanding any such link between structure and function is critical for understanding how underlying brain pathology influences the progressive behavioral changes associated with neurodegeneration. Here, we demonstrate such a link between structure and function in individuals with premanifest Huntington's. Methods Using diffusion tractography and resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging to characterize white matter organization and functional connectivity, we investigate whether characteristic patterns of white matter organization in the healthy human brain shape the changes in functional coupling between brain regions in premanifest Huntington's disease. Results We find changes in functional connectivity in premanifest Huntington's disease that link directly to underlying patterns of white matter organization in healthy brains. Specifically, brain areas with strong structural connectivity show decreases in functional connectivity in premanifest Huntington's disease relative to controls, while regions with weak structural connectivity show increases in functional connectivity. Furthermore, we identify a pattern of dissociation in the strongest functional connections between anterior and posterior brain regions such that anterior functional connectivity increases in strength in premanifest Huntington's disease, while posterior functional connectivity decreases. Interpretation Our findings demonstrate that organizational principles of white matter underlie changes in functional connectivity in premanifest Huntington's disease. Furthermore, we demonstrate functional antero–posterior dissociation that is in keeping with the caudo–rostral gradient of striatal pathology in HD.
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Gargouri F, Messé A, Perlbarg V, Valabregue R, McColgan P, Yahia-Cherif L, Fernandez-Vidal S, Ben Hamida A, Benali H, Tabrizi S, Durr A, Lehéricy S. Longitudinal changes in functional connectivity of cortico-basal ganglia networks in manifests and premanifest huntington's disease. Hum Brain Mapp 2016; 37:4112-4128. [PMID: 27400836 PMCID: PMC6867429 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a genetic neurological disorder resulting in cognitive and motor impairments. We evaluated the longitudinal changes of functional connectivity in sensorimotor, associative and limbic cortico-basal ganglia networks. We acquired structural MRI and resting-state fMRI in three visits one year apart, in 18 adult HD patients, 24 asymptomatic mutation carriers (preHD) and 18 gender- and age-matched healthy volunteers from the TRACK-HD study. We inferred topological changes in functional connectivity between 182 regions within cortico-basal ganglia networks using graph theory measures. We found significant differences for global graph theory measures in HD but not in preHD. The average shortest path length (L) decreased, which indicated a change toward the random network topology. HD patients also demonstrated increases in degree k, reduced betweeness centrality bc and reduced clustering C. Changes predominated in the sensorimotor network for bc and C and were observed in all circuits for k. Hubs were reduced in preHD and no longer detectable in HD in the sensorimotor and associative networks. Changes in graph theory metrics (L, k, C and bc) correlated with four clinical and cognitive measures (symbol digit modalities test, Stroop, Burden and UHDRS). There were no changes in graph theory metrics across sessions, which suggests that these measures are not reliable biomarkers of longitudinal changes in HD. preHD is characterized by progressive decreasing hub organization, and these changes aggravate in HD patients with changes in local metrics. HD is characterized by progressive changes in global network interconnectivity, whose network topology becomes more random over time. Hum Brain Mapp 37:4112-4128, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatma Gargouri
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France
- Advanced Technologies for Medicine and Signals - ATMS, Ecole Nationale D'Ingénieurs De Sfax - ENIS, Sfax Université, Tunisia
| | - Arnaud Messé
- Department of Computational Neuroscience, University Medical Center Eppendorf, Hamburg University, Germany
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS UMR 7371, Inserm UMR_S 1146, Laboratoire D'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, F-75013, France
| | - Vincent Perlbarg
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS UMR 7371, Inserm UMR_S 1146, Laboratoire D'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, F-75013, France
- Bioinformatics and Biostatistics platform - ICONICS, Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Paris, France
| | - Romain Valabregue
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France
| | - Peter McColgan
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Lydia Yahia-Cherif
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France
| | - Sara Fernandez-Vidal
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France
| | - Ahmed Ben Hamida
- Advanced Technologies for Medicine and Signals - ATMS, Ecole Nationale D'Ingénieurs De Sfax - ENIS, Sfax Université, Tunisia
| | - Habib Benali
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, CNRS UMR 7371, Inserm UMR_S 1146, Laboratoire D'Imagerie Biomédicale, Paris, F-75013, France
| | - Sarah Tabrizi
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Alexandra Durr
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France
- Department of Genetics, APHP, University Hospital Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Stéphane Lehéricy
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Centre De NeuroImagerie De Recherche - CENIR, Paris, France.
- Institut Du Cerveau Et De La Moelle Épinière - ICM, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Inserm U1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France.
- ICM Team Control of Normal and Abnormal Movement.
- Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Service De Neuroradiologie, Paris, France.
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Coppen EM, van der Grond J, Hafkemeijer A, Rombouts SARB, Roos RAC. Early grey matter changes in structural covariance networks in Huntington's disease. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2016; 12:806-814. [PMID: 27830113 PMCID: PMC5094265 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2016.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2016] [Revised: 09/27/2016] [Accepted: 10/11/2016] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Background Progressive subcortical changes are known to occur in Huntington's disease (HD), a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder. Less is known about the occurrence and cohesion of whole brain grey matter changes in HD. Objectives We aimed to detect network integrity changes in grey matter structural covariance networks and examined relationships with clinical assessments. Methods Structural magnetic resonance imaging data of premanifest HD (n = 30), HD patients (n = 30) and controls (n = 30) was used to identify ten structural covariance networks based on a novel technique using the co-variation of grey matter with independent component analysis in FSL. Group differences were studied controlling for age and gender. To explore whether our approach is effective in examining grey matter changes, regional voxel-based analysis was additionally performed. Results Premanifest HD and HD patients showed decreased network integrity in two networks compared to controls. One network included the caudate nucleus, precuneous and anterior cingulate cortex (in HD p < 0.001, in pre-HD p = 0.003). One other network contained the hippocampus, premotor, sensorimotor, and insular cortices (in HD p < 0.001, in pre-HD p = 0.023). Additionally, in HD patients only, decreased network integrity was observed in a network including the lingual gyrus, intracalcarine, cuneal, and lateral occipital cortices (p = 0.032). Changes in network integrity were significantly associated with scores of motor and neuropsychological assessments. In premanifest HD, voxel-based analyses showed pronounced volume loss in the basal ganglia, but less prominent in cortical regions. Conclusion Our results suggest that structural covariance might be a sensitive approach to reveal early grey matter changes, especially for premanifest HD. Identification of anatomical networks in Huntington's disease (HD). Independent component analysis was used to examine structural covariance networks. HD patients showed changes in subcortical and cortical covariance networks. A network-based approach is sensitive to reveal early grey matter changes.
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Key Words
- CAG, cytosine-adenine-guanine
- Grey matter
- HD, Huntington's disease
- HTT, Huntingtin
- Huntington's disease
- ICA, Independent Component Analysis
- MMSE, Mini Mental State Examination
- MNI, Montreal Neurological Institute
- SDMT, Symbol Digit Modality Test
- Structural MRI
- Structural covariance networks
- TFC, Total Functional Capacity
- TMS, Total Motor Score
- TMT, Trail-Making Test
- UHDRS, Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale
- VBM, Voxel-Based Morphometry
- Voxel-based morphometry
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M Coppen
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Jeroen van der Grond
- Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Anne Hafkemeijer
- Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands; Department of Methodology and Statistics, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, PO Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Serge A R B Rombouts
- Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands; Department of Methodology and Statistics, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, PO Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Raymund A C Roos
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, PO Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
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Di Pardo A, Amico E, Maglione V. Impaired Levels of Gangliosides in the Corpus Callosum of Huntington Disease Animal Models. Front Neurosci 2016; 10:457. [PMID: 27766070 PMCID: PMC5052274 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2016.00457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2016] [Accepted: 09/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Huntington Disease (HD) is a genetic neurodegenerative disorder characterized by broad types of cellular and molecular dysfunctions that may affect both neuronal and non-neuronal cell populations. Among all the molecular mechanisms underlying the complex pathogenesis of the disease, alteration of sphingolipids has been identified as one of the most important determinants in the last years. In the present study, besides the purpose of further confirming the evidence of perturbed metabolism of gangliosides GM1, GD1a, and GT1b the most abundant cerebral glycosphingolipids, in the striatal and cortical tissues of HD transgenic mice, we aimed to test the hypothesis that abnormal levels of these lipids may be found also in the corpus callosum white matter, a ganglioside-enriched brain region described being dysfunctional early in the disease. Semi-quantitative analysis of GM1, GD1a, and GT1b content indicated that ganglioside metabolism is a common feature in two different HD animal models (YAC128 and R6/2 mice) and importantly, demonstrated that levels of these gangliosides were significantly reduced in the corpus callosum white matter of both models starting from the early stages of the disease. Besides corroborating the evidence of aberrant ganglioside metabolism in HD, here, we found out for the first time, that ganglioside dysfunction is an early event in HD models and it may potentially represent a critical molecular change influencing the pathogenesis of the disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alba Di Pardo
- Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo (IRCCS) Neuromed Pozzilli, Italy
| | - Enrico Amico
- Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo (IRCCS) Neuromed Pozzilli, Italy
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fMRI in Neurodegenerative Diseases: From Scientific Insights to Clinical Applications. NEUROMETHODS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-5611-1_23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Matsui JT, Vaidya JG, Wassermann D, Kim RE, Magnotta VA, Johnson HJ, Paulsen JS. Prefrontal cortex white matter tracts in prodromal Huntington disease. Hum Brain Mapp 2015; 36:3717-32. [PMID: 26179962 PMCID: PMC4583330 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.22835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Revised: 04/20/2015] [Accepted: 04/28/2015] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington disease (HD) is most widely known for its selective degeneration of striatal neurons but there is also growing evidence for white matter (WM) deterioration. The primary objective of this research was to conduct a large-scale analysis using multisite diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) tractography data to quantify diffusivity properties along major prefrontal cortex WM tracts in prodromal HD. Fifteen international sites participating in the PREDICT-HD study collected imaging and neuropsychological data on gene-positive HD participants without a clinical diagnosis (i.e., prodromal) and gene-negative control participants. The anatomical prefrontal WM tracts of the corpus callosum (PFCC), anterior thalamic radiations (ATRs), inferior fronto-occipital fasciculi (IFO), and uncinate fasciculi (UNC) were identified using streamline tractography of DWI. Within each of these tracts, tensor scalars for fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity coefficients were calculated. We divided prodromal HD subjects into three CAG-age product (CAP) groups having Low, Medium, or High probabilities of onset indexed by genetic exposure. We observed significant differences in WM properties for each of the four anatomical tracts for the High CAP group in comparison to controls. Additionally, the Medium CAP group presented differences in the ATR and IFO in comparison to controls. Furthermore, WM alterations in the PFCC, ATR, and IFO showed robust associations with neuropsychological measures of executive functioning. These results suggest long-range tracts essential for cross-region information transfer show early vulnerability in HD and may explain cognitive problems often present in the prodromal stage. Hum Brain Mapp 36:3717-3732, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joy T. Matsui
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- John A. Burns School of MedicineUniversity of HawaiiHonoluluHawaii
| | - Jatin G. Vaidya
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | | | - Regina Eunyoung Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | - Vincent A. Magnotta
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of Radiology, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of EngineeringUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | - Hans J. Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of EngineeringUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of EngineeringUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
| | - Jane S. Paulsen
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of Neurology, Carver College of MedicineUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of IowaIowa CityIowa
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Harrington DL, Rubinov M, Durgerian S, Mourany L, Reece C, Koenig K, Bullmore E, Long JD, Paulsen JS, Rao SM. Network topology and functional connectivity disturbances precede the onset of Huntington's disease. Brain 2015; 138:2332-46. [PMID: 26059655 PMCID: PMC5022662 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awv145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2015] [Accepted: 04/04/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Cognitive, motor and psychiatric changes in prodromal Huntington's disease have nurtured the emergent need for early interventions. Preventive clinical trials for Huntington's disease, however, are limited by a shortage of suitable measures that could serve as surrogate outcomes. Measures of intrinsic functional connectivity from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging are of keen interest. Yet recent studies suggest circumscribed abnormalities in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging connectivity in prodromal Huntington's disease, despite the spectrum of behavioural changes preceding a manifest diagnosis. The present study used two complementary analytical approaches to examine whole-brain resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging connectivity in prodromal Huntington's disease. Network topology was studied using graph theory and simple functional connectivity amongst brain regions was explored using the network-based statistic. Participants consisted of gene-negative controls (n = 16) and prodromal Huntington's disease individuals (n = 48) with various stages of disease progression to examine the influence of disease burden on intrinsic connectivity. Graph theory analyses showed that global network interconnectivity approximated a random network topology as proximity to diagnosis neared and this was associated with decreased connectivity amongst highly-connected rich-club network hubs, which integrate processing from diverse brain regions. However, functional segregation within the global network (average clustering) was preserved. Functional segregation was also largely maintained at the local level, except for the notable decrease in the diversity of anterior insula intermodular-interconnections (participation coefficient), irrespective of disease burden. In contrast, network-based statistic analyses revealed patterns of weakened frontostriatal connections and strengthened frontal-posterior connections that evolved as disease burden increased. These disturbances were often related to long-range connections involving peripheral nodes and interhemispheric connections. A strong association was found between weaker connectivity and decreased rich-club organization, indicating that whole-brain simple connectivity partially expressed disturbances in the communication of highly-connected hubs. However, network topology and network-based statistic connectivity metrics did not correlate with key markers of executive dysfunction (Stroop Test, Trail Making Test) in prodromal Huntington's disease, which instead were related to whole-brain connectivity disturbances in nodes (right inferior parietal, right thalamus, left anterior cingulate) that exhibited multiple aberrant connections and that mediate executive control. Altogether, our results show for the first time a largely disease burden-dependent functional reorganization of whole-brain networks in prodromal Huntington's disease. Both analytic approaches provided a unique window into brain reorganization that was not related to brain atrophy or motor symptoms. Longitudinal studies currently in progress will chart the course of functional changes to determine the most sensitive markers of disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deborah L. Harrington
- 1 Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA,2 Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA, 92161, USA
| | - Mikail Rubinov
- 3 Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 2QQ, UK,4 Churchill College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 0DS, UK
| | - Sally Durgerian
- 5 Department of Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, 53226, USA
| | - Lyla Mourany
- 6 Schey Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA
| | - Christine Reece
- 6 Schey Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA
| | - Katherine Koenig
- 7 Imaging Sciences, Imaging Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA
| | - Ed Bullmore
- 3 Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 2QQ, UK
| | - Jeffrey D. Long
- 8 Carver College of Medicine, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
| | - Jane S. Paulsen
- 8 Carver College of Medicine, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
| | | | - Stephen M. Rao
- 6 Schey Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, 44195, USA
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Chang R, Liu X, Li S, Li XJ. Transgenic animal models for study of the pathogenesis of Huntington's disease and therapy. DRUG DESIGN DEVELOPMENT AND THERAPY 2015; 9:2179-88. [PMID: 25931812 PMCID: PMC4404937 DOI: 10.2147/dddt.s58470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is caused by a genetic mutation that results in polyglutamine expansion in the N-terminal regions of huntingtin. As a result, this polyQ expansion leads to the misfolding and aggregation of mutant huntingtin as well as age-dependent neurodegeneration. The genetic mutation in HD allows for generating a variety of animal models that express different forms of mutant huntingtin and show differential pathology. Studies of these animal models have provided an important insight into the pathogenesis of HD. Mouse models of HD include transgenic mice, which express N-terminal or full-length mutant huntingtin ubiquitously or selectively in different cell types, and knock-in mice that express full-length mutant Htt at the endogenous level. Large animals, such as pig, sheep, and monkeys, have also been used to generate animal HD models. This review focuses on the different features of commonly used transgenic HD mouse models as well as transgenic large animal models of HD, and also discusses how to use them to identify potential therapeutics. Since HD shares many pathological features with other neurodegenerative diseases, identification of therapies for HD would also help to develop effective treatment for different neurodegenerative diseases that are also caused by protein misfolding and occur in an age-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renbao Chang
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Xudong Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Shihua Li
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Xiao-Jiang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China ; Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
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Wassef SN, Wemmie J, Johnson CP, Johnson H, Paulsen JS, Long JD, Magnotta VA. T1ρ imaging in premanifest Huntington disease reveals changes associated with disease progression. Mov Disord 2015; 30:1107-14. [PMID: 25820773 DOI: 10.1002/mds.26203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2014] [Revised: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 01/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Imaging biomarkers sensitive to Huntington's disease (HD) during the premanifest phase preceding motor diagnosis may accelerate identification and evaluation of potential therapies. For this purpose, quantitative MRI sensitive to tissue microstructure and metabolism may hold great potential. We investigated the potential value of T1ρ relaxation to detect pathological changes in premanifest HD (preHD) relative to other quantitative relaxation parameters. METHODS Quantitative MR parametric mapping was used to assess differences between 50 preHD subjects and 26 age- and sex-matched controls. Subjects with preHD were classified into two progression groups based on their CAG-age product (CAP) score; a high and a low/moderate CAP group. Voxel-wise and region-of-interest analyses were used to assess changes in the quantitative relaxation times. RESULTS T1ρ showed a significant increase in the relaxation times in the high-CAP group, as compared to controls, largely in the striatum. The T1ρ changes in the preHD subjects showed a significant relationship with CAP score. No significant changes in T2 or T2* relaxation times were found in the striatum. T2* relaxation changes were found in the globus pallidus, but no significant changes with disease progression were found. CONCLUSION These data suggest that quantitative T1ρ mapping may provide a useful marker for assessing disease progression in HD. The absence of T2 changes suggests that the T1ρ abnormalities are unlikely owing to altered water content or tissue structure. The established sensitivity of T1ρ to pH and glucose suggests that these factors are altered in HD perhaps owing to abnormal mitochondrial function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shafik N Wassef
- Department of Radiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,SINAPSE, Iowa Neuroimaging Consortium, Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - John Wemmie
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Neurosurgery, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Veterans Affairs Hospital Center, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Casey P Johnson
- Department of Radiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Hans Johnson
- SINAPSE, Iowa Neuroimaging Consortium, Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Jane S Paulsen
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Jeffrey D Long
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Biostatistics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Vincent A Magnotta
- Department of Radiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
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Dogan I, Eickhoff CR, Fox PT, Laird AR, Schulz JB, Eickhoff SB, Reetz K. Functional connectivity modeling of consistent cortico-striatal degeneration in Huntington's disease. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2015; 7:640-52. [PMID: 25844318 PMCID: PMC4375786 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2015.02.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2014] [Revised: 02/19/2015] [Accepted: 02/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by a complex neuropsychiatric phenotype. In a recent meta-analysis we identified core regions of consistent neurodegeneration in premanifest HD in the striatum and middle occipital gyrus (MOG). For early manifest HD convergent evidence of atrophy was most prominent in the striatum, motor cortex (M1) and inferior frontal junction (IFJ). The aim of the present study was to functionally characterize this topography of brain atrophy and to investigate differential connectivity patterns formed by consistent cortico-striatal atrophy regions in HD. Using areas of striatal and cortical atrophy at different disease stages as seeds, we performed task-free resting-state and task-based meta-analytic connectivity modeling (MACM). MACM utilizes the large data source of the BrainMap database and identifies significant areas of above-chance co-activation with the seed-region via the activation-likelihood-estimation approach. In order to delineate functional networks formed by cortical as well as striatal atrophy regions we computed the conjunction between the co-activation profiles of striatal and cortical seeds in the premanifest and manifest stages of HD, respectively. Functional characterization of the seeds was obtained using the behavioral meta-data of BrainMap. Cortico-striatal atrophy seeds of the premanifest stage of HD showed common co-activation with a rather cognitive network including the striatum, anterior insula, lateral prefrontal, premotor, supplementary motor and parietal regions. A similar but more pronounced co-activation pattern, additionally including the medial prefrontal cortex and thalamic nuclei was found with striatal and IFJ seeds at the manifest HD stage. The striatum and M1 were functionally connected mainly to premotor and sensorimotor areas, posterior insula, putamen and thalamus. Behavioral characterization of the seeds confirmed that experiments activating the MOG or IFJ in conjunction with the striatum were associated with cognitive functions, while the network formed by M1 and the striatum was driven by motor-related tasks. Thus, based on morphological changes in HD, we identified functionally distinct cortico-striatal networks resembling a cognitive and motor loop, which may be prone to early disruptions in different stages of the disease and underlie HD-related cognitive and motor symptom profiles. Our findings provide an important link between morphometrically defined seed-regions and corresponding functional circuits highlighting the functional and ensuing clinical relevance of structural damage in HD. Pre-HD atrophy seeds showed common functional co-activation with a cognitive network. Modeling of manifest-HD seeds delineated a segregation of a cognitive and motor loop. Behavioral decoding of atrophy seeds confirmed functional segregation of networks. Based on morphometric changes in HD distinct corticostriatal networks were identified. Findings depict functional and ensuing clinical relevance of structural damage in HD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Imis Dogan
- Department of Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstr. 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany ; Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1, INM-4), Research Center Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany ; JARA - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Jülich, Germany
| | - Claudia R Eickhoff
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1, INM-4), Research Center Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany ; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstr. 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Peter T Fox
- Research Imaging Center, University of Texas Health Science Center, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, TX 78284-7801, USA
| | - Angela R Laird
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Modesto A. Maidique Campus, CP 204, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Jörg B Schulz
- Department of Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstr. 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany ; JARA - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Jülich, Germany
| | - Simon B Eickhoff
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1, INM-4), Research Center Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany ; Institute of Clinical Neuroscience and Medical Psychology, Heinrich-Heine University, Universitätsstr. 1, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Kathrin Reetz
- Department of Neurology, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstr. 30, 52074 Aachen, Germany ; Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1, INM-4), Research Center Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany ; JARA - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Jülich, Germany
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Abnormal cerebellar volume and corticocerebellar dysfunction in early manifest Huntington’s disease. J Neurol 2015; 262:859-69. [DOI: 10.1007/s00415-015-7642-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2014] [Revised: 01/08/2015] [Accepted: 01/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Barkhof F, Haller S, Rombouts SARB. Resting-state functional MR imaging: a new window to the brain. Radiology 2014; 272:29-49. [PMID: 24956047 DOI: 10.1148/radiol.14132388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 250] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Resting-state (RS) functional magnetic resonance (MR) imaging constitutes a novel paradigm that examines spontaneous brain function by using blood oxygen level-dependent contrast in the absence of a task. Spatially distributed networks of temporal synchronization can be detected that can characterize RS networks (RSNs). With a short acquisition time of less than 10 minutes, RS functional MR imaging can be applied in special populations such as children and patients with dementia. Some RSNs are already present in utero, while others mature in childhood. Around 10 major RSNs are consistently found in adults, but their exact spatial extent and strength of coherence are affected by physiologic parameters and drugs. Though the acquisition and analysis methods are still evolving, new disease insights are emerging in a variety of neurologic and psychiatric disorders. The default mode network is affected in Alzheimer disease and various other diseases of cognitive impairment. Alterations in RSNs have been identified in many diseases, in the absence of evident structural modifications, indicating a high sensitivity of the method. Moreover, there is evidence of correlation between RSN alterations and disease progression and severity. However, different diseases often affect the same RSN, illustrating the limited specificity of the findings. This suggests that neurologic and psychiatric diseases are characterized by altered interactions between RSNs and therefore the whole brain should be examined as an integral network (with subnetworks), for example, using graph analysis. A challenge for clinical applications of RS functional MR imaging is the potentially confounding effect of aging, concomitant vascular diseases, or medication on the neurovascular coupling and consequently the functional MR imaging response. Current investigation combines RS functional MR imaging and other methods such as electroencephalography or magnetoencephalography to better understand the vascular and neuronal contributions to alterations in functional connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frederik Barkhof
- From the Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Neuroscience Campus Amsterdam, VU University Medical Centre, PO Box 7057, 1007 MB Amsterdam, the Netherlands (F.B.); Service neuro-diagnostique et neuro-interventionnel DISIM, University Hospitals of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland (S.H.); and Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center and Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands (S.A.R.B.R.)
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Koenig KA, Lowe MJ, Harrington DL, Lin J, Durgerian S, Mourany L, Paulsen JS, Rao SM. Functional connectivity of primary motor cortex is dependent on genetic burden in prodromal Huntington disease. Brain Connect 2014; 4:535-46. [PMID: 25072408 PMCID: PMC4146393 DOI: 10.1089/brain.2014.0271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Subtle changes in motor function have been observed in individuals with prodromal Huntington disease (prHD), but the underlying neural mechanisms are not well understood nor is the cumulative effect of the disease (disease burden) on functional connectivity. The present study examined the resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) connectivity of the primary motor cortex (M1) in 16 gene-negative (NEG) controls and 48 gene-positive prHD participants with various levels of disease burden. The results showed that the strength of the left M1 connectivity with the ipsilateral M1 and somatosensory areas decreased as disease burden increased and correlated with motor symptoms. Weakened M1 connectivity within the motor areas was also associated with abnormalities in long-range connections that evolved with disease burden. In this study, M1 connectivity was decreased with visual centers (bilateral cuneus), but increased with a hub of the default mode network (DMN; posterior cingulate cortex). Changes in connectivity measures were associated with worse performance on measures of cognitive-motor functioning. Short- and long-range functional connectivity disturbances were also associated with volume loss in the basal ganglia, suggesting that weakened M1 connectivity is partly a manifestation of striatal atrophy. Altogether, the results indicate that the prodromal phase of HD is associated with abnormal interhemispheric interactions among motor areas and disturbances in the connectivity of M1 with visual centers and the DMN. These changes may, respectively, contribute to increased motor symptoms, visuomotor integration problems, and deficits in the executive control of movement as individuals approach a manifest diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mark J. Lowe
- Imaging Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Deborah L. Harrington
- VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, California
- Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, California
| | - Jian Lin
- Imaging Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Sally Durgerian
- Department of Neurology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
| | - Lyla Mourany
- Schey Center for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Jane S. Paulsen
- Carver College of Medicine, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
| | - Stephen M. Rao
- Schey Center for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Neurological Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio
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Odish OFF, van den Berg-Huysmans AA, van den Bogaard SJA, Dumas EM, Hart EP, Rombouts SARB, van der Grond J, Roos RAC. Longitudinal resting state fMRI analysis in healthy controls and premanifest Huntington's disease gene carriers: a three-year follow-up study. Hum Brain Mapp 2014; 36:110-9. [PMID: 25139578 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.22616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2013] [Revised: 07/03/2014] [Accepted: 08/12/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND We previously demonstrated that in the premanifest stage of Huntington's disease (preHD), a reduced functional connectivity exists compared to healthy controls. In the current study, we look at possible changes in functional connectivity occurring longitudinally over a period of 3 years, with the aim of assessing the potential usefulness of this technique as a biomarker for disease progression in preHD. METHODS Twenty-two preHD and 17 healthy control subjects completed resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans in two visits with 3 years in between. Differences in resting state connectivity were examined for eight networks of interest using FSL with three different analysis types: a dual regression method, region of interest approach, and an independent component analysis. To evaluate a possible combined effect of gray matter volume change and the change in blood oxygenation level dependent signal, the analysis was performed with and without voxel-wise correction for gray matter volume. To evaluate possible correlations between functional connectivity change and the predicted time to disease onset, the preHD group was classed as preHD-A if ≥10.9 years and preHD-B if <10.9 years from predicted disease onset. Possible correlations between burden of pathology score and functional connectivity change in preHD were also assessed. Finally, longitudinal change in whole brain and striatal volumetric measures was assessed in the studied cohort. RESULTS Longitudinal analysis of the resting state-fMRI (RS-fMRI) data revealed no differences in the degree of connectivity change between the groups over a period of 3 years, though a significantly higher rate of striatal atrophy was found in the preHD group compared to controls in the same period. DISCUSSION Based on the results found in this study, the provisional conclusion is that RS-fMRI lacks sensitivity in detecting changes in functional connectivity in HD gene carriers prior to disease manifestation over a 3-year follow-up period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omar F F Odish
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
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Abstract
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disorder caused by an expanded trinucleotide CAG sequence in huntingtin gene (HTT) on chromosome 4. HD manifests with chorea, cognitive and psychiatric symptoms. Although advances in genetics allow identification of individuals carrying the HD gene, much is still unknown about the mechanisms underlying the development of overt clinical symptoms and the transitional period between premanifestation and manifestation of the disease. HD has no cure and patients rely only in symptomatic treatment. There is an urgent need to identify biomarkers that are able to monitor disease progression and assess the development and efficacy of novel disease modifying drugs. Over the past years, neuroimaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) have provided important advances in our understanding of HD. MRI provides information about structural and functional organization of the brain, while PET can detect molecular changes in the brain. MRI and PET are able to detect changes in the brains of HD gene carriers years ahead of the manifestation of the disease and have also proved to be powerful in assessing disease progression. However, no single technique has been validated as an optimal biomarker. An integrative multimodal imaging approach, which combines different MRI and PET techniques, could be recommended for monitoring potential neuroprotective and preventive therapies in HD. In this article we review the current neuroimaging literature in HD.
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