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Lam AD, Thibault EG, Mayblyum DV, Hsieh S, Pellerin KR, Sternberg EJ, Viswanathan A, Buss S, Sarkis RA, Jacobs HIL, Johnson KA, Sperling RA. Association of Seizure Foci and Location of Tau and Amyloid Deposition and Brain Atrophy in Patients With Alzheimer Disease and Seizures. Neurology 2024; 103:e209920. [PMID: 39331846 PMCID: PMC11441794 DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000209920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/29/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Alzheimer disease (AD) is associated with a 2 to 3-fold increased risk of developing late-onset focal epilepsy, yet it remains unclear how development of focal epilepsy in AD is related to AD pathology. The objective of this study was to examine spatial relationships between the epileptogenic zone and tau deposition, amyloid deposition, and brain atrophy in individuals with AD who developed late-onset, otherwise unexplained focal epilepsy. We hypothesized that if network hyperexcitability is mechanistically linked to AD pathology, then there would be increased tau and amyloid deposition within the epileptogenic hemisphere. METHODS In this cross-sectional study, we performed tau and amyloid PET imaging, brain MRI, and overnight scalp EEG in individuals with early clinical stages of AD who developed late-onset, otherwise unexplained focal epilepsy (AD-Ep). Participants were referred from epilepsy and memory disorders clinics at our institutions. We determined epilepsy localization based on EEG findings and seizure semiology. We quantified tau deposition, amyloid deposition, and atrophy across brain regions and calculated asymmetry indices for these measures. We compared findings in AD-Ep with those in a control AD group without epilepsy (AD-NoEp). RESULTS The AD-Ep group included 8 individuals with a mean age of 69.5 ± 4.2 years at PET imaging. The AD-NoEp group included 14 individuals with a mean age of 71.7 ± 9.8 years at PET imaging. In AD-Ep, we found a highly asymmetric pattern of tau deposition, with significantly greater tau in the epileptogenic hemisphere. Amyloid deposition and cortical atrophy were also greater in the epileptogenic hemisphere, although the magnitudes of asymmetry were reduced compared with tau. Compared with AD-NoEp, the AD-Ep group had significantly greater tau asymmetry and trends toward greater asymmetry of amyloid and atrophy. AD-Ep also had significantly greater amyloid burden bilaterally and trends toward greater tau burden within the epileptogenic hemisphere, compared with AD-NoEp. DISCUSSION Our results reveal a spatial association between the epileptogenic focus and tau deposition, amyloid deposition, and neurodegeneration in early clinical stages of AD. Within the limitations of a cross-sectional study with small sample sizes, these findings contribute to our understanding of the clinicopathologic heterogeneity of AD, demonstrating an association between focal epilepsy and lateralized pathology in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice D Lam
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Emma G Thibault
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Danielle V Mayblyum
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Stephanie Hsieh
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Kyle R Pellerin
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Eliezer J Sternberg
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Anand Viswanathan
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Stephanie Buss
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Rani A Sarkis
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Heidi I L Jacobs
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Keith A Johnson
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
| | - Reisa A Sperling
- From the Department of Neurology (A.D.L., S.H., K.R.P., A.V., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Harvard Medical School (A.D.L., A.V., S.B., R.A. Sarkis, H.L.J., K.A.J., R.A. Sperling), Boston; Department of Radiology (E.G.T., D.V.M., H.L.J., K.A.J.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston; Department of Neurology (E.J.S.), Milford Regional Medical Center; Department of Neurology (S.B.), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston; and Department of Neurology (R.A.Sarkis, R.A.Sperling), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA
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Nabizadeh F. Local molecular and connectomic contributions of tau-related neurodegeneration. GeroScience 2024:10.1007/s11357-024-01339-1. [PMID: 39343862 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-024-01339-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2024] [Accepted: 09/03/2024] [Indexed: 10/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is known to be mostly driven by tau neurofibrillary tangles. However, both tau and neurodegeneration exhibit variability in their distribution across the brain and among individuals, and the relationship between tau and neurodegeneration might be influenced by several factors. I aimed to map local molecular and connectivity characteristics that affect the association between tau pathology and neurodegeneration. The current study was conducted on the cross-sectional tau-PET and longitudinal T1-weighted MRI scan data of 186 participants from the ADNI dataset including 71 cognitively unimpaired (CU) and 115 mild cognitive impairment (MCI) individuals. Furthermore, the normative molecular profile of a region was defined using neurotransmitter receptor densities, gene expression, T1w/T2w ratio (myelination), FDG-PET (glycolytic index, glucose metabolism, and oxygen metabolism), and synaptic density. I found that the excitatory-inhibitory (E:I) ratio, myelination, synaptic density, glycolytic index, and functional connectivity are linked with deviation in the relationship between tau and neurodegeneration. Furthermore, there was spatial similarity between tau pathology and glycolytic index, synaptic density, and functional connectivity across brain regions. The current study demonstrates that the regional susceptibility to tau-related neurodegeneration is associated with specific molecular and connectomic characteristics of the affected neural systems. I found that the molecular and connectivity architecture of the human brain is linked to the different effects of tau pathology on downstream neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fardin Nabizadeh
- School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Alzheimer's Disease Institute, Tehran, Iran.
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Hojjati SH, Butler TA, Luchsinger JA, Benitez R, de Leon M, Nayak S, Razlighi QR, Chiang GC. Increased between-network connectivity: A risk factor for tau elevation and disease progression. Neurosci Lett 2024; 840:137943. [PMID: 39153526 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2024.137943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2024] [Revised: 06/26/2024] [Accepted: 08/14/2024] [Indexed: 08/19/2024]
Abstract
One of the pathologic hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is neurofibrillary tau tangles. Despite our knowledge that tau typically initiates in the medial temporal lobe (MTL), the mechanisms driving tau to spread beyond MTL remain unclear. Emerging evidence reveals distinct patterns of functional connectivity change during aging and preclinical AD: while connectivity within-network decreases, connectivity between-network increases. Building upon increased between-network connectivity, our study hypothesizes that this increase may play a critical role in facilitating tau spread in early stages. We conducted a longitudinal study over two to three years intervals on a cohort of 46 healthy elderly participants (mean age 64.23 ± 3.15 years, 26 females). Subjects were examined clinically and utilizing advanced imaging techniques that included resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI), structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and a second-generation positron emission tomography (PET) tau tracer, 18F-MK6240. Through unsupervised agglomerative clustering and increase in between-network connectivity, we successfully identified individuals at increased risk of future tau elevation and AD progression. Our analysis revealed that individuals with increased between-network connectivity are more likely to experience more future tau deposition, entorhinal cortex thinning, and lower selective reminding test (SRT) delayed scores. Additionally, in the limbic network, we found a strong association between tau progression and increased between-network connectivity, which was mainly driven by beta-amyloid (Aβ) positive participants. These findings provide evidence for the hypothesis that an increase in between-network connectivity predicts future tau deposition and AD progression, also enhancing our understanding of AD pathogenesis in the preclinical stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyed Hani Hojjati
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States.
| | - Tracy A Butler
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States
| | - José A Luchsinger
- Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, United States; Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, United States
| | - Richard Benitez
- Department of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, United States
| | - Mony de Leon
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States
| | - Siddharth Nayak
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States
| | - Qolamreza R Razlighi
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States
| | - Gloria C Chiang
- Department of Radiology, Brain Health Imaging Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, United States
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4
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Stampacchia S, Asadi S, Tomczyk S, Ribaldi F, Scheffler M, Lövblad KO, Pievani M, Fall AB, Preti MG, Unschuld PG, Van De Ville D, Blanke O, Frisoni GB, Garibotto V, Amico E. Fingerprints of brain disease: connectome identifiability in Alzheimer's disease. Commun Biol 2024; 7:1169. [PMID: 39294332 PMCID: PMC11411139 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06829-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2024] [Accepted: 09/03/2024] [Indexed: 09/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Functional connectivity patterns in the human brain, like the friction ridges of a fingerprint, can uniquely identify individuals. Does this "brain fingerprint" remain distinct even during Alzheimer's disease (AD)? Using fMRI data from healthy and pathologically ageing subjects, we find that individual functional connectivity profiles remain unique and highly heterogeneous during mild cognitive impairment and AD. However, the patterns that make individuals identifiable change with disease progression, revealing a reconfiguration of the brain fingerprint. Notably, connectivity shifts towards functional system connections in AD and lower-order cognitive functions in early disease stages. These findings emphasize the importance of focusing on individual variability rather than group differences in AD studies. Individual functional connectomes could be instrumental in creating personalized models of AD progression, predicting disease course, and optimizing treatments, paving the way for personalized medicine in AD management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Stampacchia
- Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute (BMI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Geneva, Switzerland.
| | - Saina Asadi
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Neurocenter, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Szymon Tomczyk
- Laboratory of Neuroimaging of Aging (LANVIE), University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Federica Ribaldi
- Laboratory of Neuroimaging of Aging (LANVIE), University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Geneva Memory Center, Department of Rehabilitation and Geriatrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Max Scheffler
- Division of Radiology, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Karl-Olof Lövblad
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Neurocenter, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Neurodiagnostic and Neurointerventional Division, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Michela Pievani
- Lab of Alzheimer's Neuroimaging and Epidemiology, IRCCS Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy
| | - Aïda B Fall
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- CIBM Center for Biomedical Imaging, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Department of Psychiatry, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Maria Giulia Preti
- Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute (BMI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Neurocenter, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- CIBM Center for Biomedical Imaging, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paul G Unschuld
- Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG), 1226, Thônex, Switzerland
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Geneva (UniGE), 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Dimitri Van De Ville
- Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute (BMI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Neurocenter, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Olaf Blanke
- Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute (BMI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Giovanni B Frisoni
- Laboratory of Neuroimaging of Aging (LANVIE), University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Geneva Memory Center, Department of Rehabilitation and Geriatrics, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Valentina Garibotto
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Geneva University Neurocenter, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- CIBM Center for Biomedical Imaging, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Enrico Amico
- Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute (BMI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Geneva, Switzerland.
- School of Mathematics, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
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Tripathi V, Fox-Fuller J, Malotaux V, Baena A, Felix NB, Alvarez S, Aguillon D, Lopera F, Somers DC, Quiroz YT. Connectome-based predictive modeling of brain pathology and cognition in Autosomal Dominant Alzheimer's Disease. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2024:2024.09.01.24312913. [PMID: 39281738 PMCID: PMC11398447 DOI: 10.1101/2024.09.01.24312913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/18/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Autosomal Dominant Alzheimer's Disease (ADAD) through genetic mutations can result in near complete expression of the disease. Tracking AD pathology development in an ADAD cohort of Presenilin-1 (PSEN1) E280A carriers' mutation has allowed us to observe incipient tau tangles accumulation as early as 6 years prior to symptom onset. METHODS Resting-state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Positron-Emission Tomography (PET) scans were acquired in a group of PSEN1 carriers (n=32) and non-carrier family members (n=35). We applied Connectome-based Predictive Modeling (CPM) to examine the relationship between the participant's functional connectome and their respective tau/amyloid-β levels and cognitive scores (word list recall). RESULTS CPM models strongly predicted tau concentrations and cognitive scores within the carrier group. The connectivity patterns between the temporal cortex, default mode network, and other memory networks were the most informative of tau burden. DISCUSSION These results indicate that resting-state fMRI methods can complement PET methods in early detection and monitoring of disease progression in ADAD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vaibhav Tripathi
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University
- Department of Psychology & Center for Brain Science, Harvard University
| | - Joshua Fox-Fuller
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School
| | | | - Ana Baena
- Grupo de Neurociencias, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
| | | | | | - David Aguillon
- Grupo de Neurociencias, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
| | - Francisco Lopera
- Grupo de Neurociencias, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
| | - David C Somers
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University
| | - Yakeel T Quiroz
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School
- Grupo de Neurociencias, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Colombia
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Nabizadeh F. Aβ remotely and locally facilitates Alzheimer's disease tau spreading. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae386. [PMID: 39329358 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2024] [Revised: 08/11/2024] [Accepted: 09/09/2024] [Indexed: 09/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the accumulation of amyloid-beta plaques initiated approximately 2 decades before the symptom onset followed by build-up and spreading of neurofibrillary tau aggregates. Although it has been suggested that the amyloid-beta amplifies tau spreading the observed spatial disparity called it into question. Yet, it is unclear how neocortical amyloid-beta remotely affects early pathological tau, triggering it to leave the early formation area, and how amyloid-beta facilitates tau aggregate spreading throughout cortical regions. I aimed to investigate how amyloid-beta can facilitate tau spreading through neuronal connections in the Alzheimer's disease pathological process by combining functional magnetic resonance imaging normative connectomes and longitudinal in vivo molecular imaging data. In total, the imaging data of 317 participants, including 173 amyloid-beta-negative non-demented and 144 amyloid-beta -positive non-demented participants, have entered the study from Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. Furthermore, normative resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging connectomes were used to model tau spreading through functional connections. It was observed that the amyloid-beta in regions with the highest deposition (amyloid-beta epicenter) is remotely associated with connectivity-based spreading of tau pathology. Moreover, amyloid-beta in regions that exhibit the highest tau pathology (tau epicenter) is associated with increased connectivity-based tau spreading to non-epicenter regions. The findings provide a further explanation for a long-standing question of how amyloid-beta can affect tau aggregate spreading through neuronal connections despite spatial incongruity. The results suggest that amyloid-beta pathology can remotely and locally facilitate connectivity-based spreading of tau aggregates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fardin Nabizadeh
- School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Shahid Hemmat Highway, Tehran 14496-14535, Iran
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7
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Sadeghi M, Azargoonjahromi A, Nasiri H, Yaghoobi A, Sadeghi M, Chavoshi SS, Baghaeikia S, Mahzari N, Valipour A, Razeghi Oskouei R, Shahkarami F, Amiri F, Mayeli M. Altered brain connectivity in mild cognitive impairment is linked to elevated tau and phosphorylated tau, but not to GAP-43 and Amyloid-β measurements: a resting-state fMRI study. Mol Brain 2024; 17:60. [PMID: 39215335 PMCID: PMC11363600 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-024-01136-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2024] [Accepted: 08/19/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) is a neurological condition characterized by a noticeable decline in cognitive abilities that falls between normal aging and dementia. Along with some biomarkers like GAP-43, Aβ, tau, and P-tau, brain activity and connectivity are ascribed to MCI; however, the link between brain connectivity changes and such biomarkers in MCI is still being investigated. This study explores the relationship between biomarkers like GAP-43, Aβ, tau, and P-tau, and brain connectivity. We enrolled 25 Participants with normal cognitive function and 23 patients with MCI. Levels of GAP-43, Aβ1-42, t-tau, and p-tau181p in the CSF were measured, and functional connectivity measures including ROI-to-voxel (RV) correlations and the DMN RV-ratio were extracted from the resting-state fMRI data. P-values below 0.05 were considered significant. The results showed that in CN individuals, higher connectivity within the both anterior default mode network (aDMN) and posterior DMN (pDMN) was associated with higher levels of the biomarker GAP-43. In contrast, MCI individuals showed significant negative correlations between DMN connectivity and levels of tau and P-tau. Notably, no significant correlations were found between Aβ levels and connectivity measures in either group. These findings suggest that elevated levels of GAP-43 indicate increased functional connectivity in aDMN and pDMN. Conversely, elevated levels of tau and p-tau can disrupt connectivity through various mechanisms. Thus, the accumulation of tau and p-tau can lead to impaired neuronal connectivity, contributing to cognitive decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Sadeghi
- School of Rehabilitation, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
| | | | - Hamide Nasiri
- School of Medicine, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran
| | - Arash Yaghoobi
- School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Maryam Sadeghi
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Children Medical Center Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Shilan Baghaeikia
- Faculty of the Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
| | - Nastaran Mahzari
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, International Campus, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Arina Valipour
- School of Allied Medical Sciences, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Romina Razeghi Oskouei
- Department of clinical laboratory sciences, Qazvin University of medical sciences, Qazvin, Iran
| | - Farshad Shahkarami
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Fatemeh Amiri
- Student Research Committee, Afzalipour Faculty of Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran
| | - Mahsa Mayeli
- School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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Catterson JH, Mouofo EN, López De Toledo Soler I, Lean G, Dlamini S, Liddell P, Voong G, Katsinelos T, Wang YC, Schoovaerts N, Verstreken P, Spires-Jones TL, Durrant CS. Drosophila appear resistant to trans-synaptic tau propagation. Brain Commun 2024; 6:fcae256. [PMID: 39130515 PMCID: PMC11316205 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcae256] [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: 03/11/2024] [Revised: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 08/07/2024] [Indexed: 08/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia in the elderly, prompting extensive efforts to pinpoint novel therapeutic targets for effective intervention. Among the hallmark features of Alzheimer's disease is the development of neurofibrillary tangles comprised of hyperphosphorylated tau protein, whose progressive spread throughout the brain is associated with neuronal death. Trans-synaptic propagation of tau has been observed in mouse models, and indirect evidence for tau spread via synapses has been observed in human Alzheimer's disease. Halting tau propagation is a promising therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease; thus, a scalable model system to screen for modifiers of tau spread would be very useful for the field. To this end, we sought to emulate the trans-synaptic spread of human tau in Drosophila melanogaster. Employing the trans-Tango circuit mapping technique, we investigated whether tau spreads between synaptically connected neurons. Immunohistochemistry and confocal imaging were used to look for tau propagation. Examination of hundreds of flies expressing four different human tau constructs in two distinct neuronal populations reveals a robust resistance in Drosophila to the trans-synaptic spread of human tau. This resistance persisted in lines with concurrent expression of amyloid-β, in lines with global human tau knock-in to provide a template for human tau in downstream neurons, and with manipulations of temperature. These negative data are important for the field as we establish that Drosophila expressing human tau in subsets of neurons are unlikely to be useful to perform screens to find mechanisms to reduce the trans-synaptic spread of tau. The inherent resistance observed in Drosophila may serve as a valuable clue, offering insights into strategies for impeding tau spread in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- James H Catterson
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Edmond N Mouofo
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | | | - Gillian Lean
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Stella Dlamini
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Phoebe Liddell
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Graham Voong
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Taxiarchis Katsinelos
- Schaller Research Group at the University of Heidelberg and the DKFZ, German Cancer Research Center, Proteostasis in Neurodegenerative Disease (B180), INF 581, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg University, INF 234, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Yu-Chun Wang
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, Department of Neurosciences, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- KU Leuven, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nils Schoovaerts
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, Department of Neurosciences, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- KU Leuven, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Patrik Verstreken
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, Department of Neurosciences, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- KU Leuven, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Tara L Spires-Jones
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
| | - Claire S Durrant
- Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK
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9
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Parent JH, Cassady K, Jagust WJ, Berry AS. Pathological and neurochemical correlates of locus coeruleus functional network activity. Biol Psychol 2024; 192:108847. [PMID: 39038634 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2024.108847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Revised: 06/25/2024] [Accepted: 07/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/24/2024]
Abstract
The locus coeruleus (LC) produces the neuromodulators norepinephrine and dopamine, and projects widely to subcortical and cortical brain regions. The LC has been a focus of neuroimaging biomarker development for the early detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD) since it was identified as one of the earliest brain regions to develop tau pathology. Our recent research established the use of positron emission tomography (PET) to measure LC catecholamine synthesis capacity in cognitively unimpaired older adults. We extend this work by investigating the possible influence of pathology and LC neurochemical function on LC network activity using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In separate sessions, participants underwent PET imaging to measure LC catecholamine synthesis capacity ([18F]Fluoro-m-tyrosine), tau pathology ([18F]Flortaucipir), and amyloid-β pathology ([11C]Pittsburgh compound B), and fMRI imaging to measure LC functional network activity at rest. Consistent with a growing body of research in aging and preclinical AD, we find that higher functional network activity is associated with higher tau burden in individuals at risk of developing AD (amyloid-β positive). Critically, relationships between higher LC network activity and higher pathology (amyloid-β and tau) were moderated by LC catecholamine synthesis capacity. High levels of LC catecholamine synthesis capacity reduced relationships between higher network activity and pathology. Broadly, these findings support the view that individual differences in functional network activity are shaped by interactions between pathology and neuromodulator function, and point to catecholamine systems as potential therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jourdan H Parent
- Department of Psychology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA.
| | - Kaitlin Cassady
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - William J Jagust
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Anne S Berry
- Department of Psychology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA; Volen Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453, USA
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10
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Murai SA, Mano T, Sanes JN, Watanabe T. Atypical intrinsic neural timescale in the left angular gyrus in Alzheimer's disease. Brain Commun 2024; 6:fcae199. [PMID: 38993284 PMCID: PMC11227993 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcae199] [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: 10/15/2023] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 06/07/2024] [Indexed: 07/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease is characterized by cognitive impairment and progressive brain atrophy. Recent human neuroimaging studies reported atypical anatomical and functional changes in some regions in the default mode network in patients with Alzheimer's disease, but which brain area of the default mode network is the key region whose atrophy disturbs the entire network activity and consequently contributes to the symptoms of the disease remains unidentified. Here, in this case-control study, we aimed to identify crucial neural regions that mediated the phenotype of Alzheimer's disease, and as such, we examined the intrinsic neural timescales-a functional metric to evaluate the capacity to integrate diverse neural information-and grey matter volume of the regions in the default mode network using resting-state functional MRI images and structural MRI data obtained from individuals with Alzheimer's disease and cognitively typical people. After confirming the atypically short neural timescale of the entire default mode network in Alzheimer's disease and its link with the symptoms of the disease, we found that the shortened neural timescale of the default mode network was associated with the aberrantly short neural timescale of the left angular gyrus. Moreover, we revealed that the shortened neural timescale of the angular gyrus was correlated with the atypically reduced grey matter volume of this parietal region. Furthermore, we identified an association between the neural structure, brain function and symptoms and proposed a model in which the reduced grey matter volume of the left angular gyrus shortened the intrinsic neural time of the region, which then destabilized the entire neural timescale of the default mode network and resultantly contributed to cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease. These findings highlight the key role of the left angular gyrus in the anatomical and functional aetiology of Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shota A Murai
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence (WPI-IRCN), The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Tatsuo Mano
- Department of Degenerative Neurological Diseases, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo 187-8551, Japan
| | - Jerome N Sanes
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
- Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
- Center for Neurorestoration and Neurotechnology, Veterans Affairs Providence Healthcare System, Providence, RI 02908, USA
| | - Takamitsu Watanabe
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence (WPI-IRCN), The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, Bunkyo City, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
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11
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Roemer SN, Brendel M, Gnörich J, Malpetti M, Zaganjori M, Quattrone A, Gross M, Steward A, Dewenter A, Wagner F, Dehsarvi A, Ferschmann C, Wall S, Palleis C, Rauchmann BS, Katzdobler S, Jäck A, Stockbauer A, Fietzek UM, Bernhardt AM, Weidinger E, Zwergal A, Stöcklein S, Perneczky R, Barthel H, Sabri O, Levin J, Höglinger GU, Franzmeier N. Subcortical tau is linked to hypoperfusion in connected cortical regions in 4-repeat tauopathies. Brain 2024; 147:2428-2439. [PMID: 38842726 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awae174] [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: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 04/28/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Four-repeat (4R) tauopathies are neurodegenerative diseases characterized by cerebral accumulation of 4R tau pathology. The most prominent 4R tauopathies are progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and corticobasal degeneration characterized by subcortical tau accumulation and cortical neuronal dysfunction, as shown by PET-assessed hypoperfusion and glucose hypometabolism. Yet, there is a spatial mismatch between subcortical tau deposition patterns and cortical neuronal dysfunction, and it is unclear how these two pathological brain changes are interrelated. Here, we hypothesized that subcortical tau pathology induces remote neuronal dysfunction in functionally connected cortical regions to test a pathophysiological model that mechanistically links subcortical tau accumulation to cortical neuronal dysfunction in 4R tauopathies. We included 51 Aβ-negative patients with clinically diagnosed PSP variants (n = 26) or corticobasal syndrome (n = 25) who underwent structural MRI and 18F-PI-2620 tau-PET. 18F-PI-2620 tau-PET was recorded using a dynamic one-stop-shop acquisition protocol to determine an early 0.5-2.5 min post tracer-injection perfusion window for assessing cortical neuronal dysfunction, as well as a 20-40 min post tracer-injection window to determine 4R-tau load. Perfusion-PET (i.e. early window) was assessed in 200 cortical regions, and tau-PET was assessed in 32 subcortical regions of established functional brain atlases. We determined tau epicentres as subcortical regions with the highest 18F-PI-2620 tau-PET signal and assessed the connectivity of tau epicentres to cortical regions of interest using a resting-state functional MRI-based functional connectivity template derived from 69 healthy elderly controls from the ADNI cohort. Using linear regression, we assessed whether: (i) higher subcortical tau-PET was associated with reduced cortical perfusion; and (ii) cortical perfusion reductions were observed preferentially in regions closely connected to subcortical tau epicentres. As hypothesized, higher subcortical tau-PET was associated with overall lower cortical perfusion, which remained consistent when controlling for cortical tau-PET. Using group-average and subject-level PET data, we found that the seed-based connectivity pattern of subcortical tau epicentres aligned with cortical perfusion patterns, where cortical regions that were more closely connected to the tau epicentre showed lower perfusion. Together, subcortical tau-accumulation is associated with remote perfusion reductions indicative of neuronal dysfunction in functionally connected cortical regions in 4R-tauopathies. This suggests that subcortical tau pathology may induce cortical dysfunction, which may contribute to clinical disease manifestation and clinical heterogeneity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian N Roemer
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Matthias Brendel
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Johannes Gnörich
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Maura Malpetti
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1TN, UK
| | - Mirlind Zaganjori
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Andrea Quattrone
- Institute of Neurology, Magna Graecia University, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Mattes Gross
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Steward
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Dewenter
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Fabian Wagner
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Amir Dehsarvi
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Christian Ferschmann
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Stephan Wall
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Carla Palleis
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Boris S Rauchmann
- Department of Neuroradiology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany
| | - Sabrina Katzdobler
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Alexander Jäck
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Stockbauer
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Urban M Fietzek
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Alexander M Bernhardt
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Endy Weidinger
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Andreas Zwergal
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Vertigo and Balance Disorders (DSGZ), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Sophia Stöcklein
- Department of Radiology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Robert Perneczky
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany
- Ageing Epidemiology (AGE) Research Unit, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London SW7 2BX, UK
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2HQ, UK
| | - Henryk Barthel
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Osama Sabri
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Johannes Levin
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Günter U Höglinger
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Nicolai Franzmeier
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, SE 413 90 Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
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12
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Garcia-Cordero I, Anastassiadis C, Khoja A, Morales-Rivero A, Thapa S, Vasilevskaya A, Davenport C, Sumra V, Couto B, Multani N, Taghdiri F, Anor C, Misquitta K, Vandevrede L, Heuer H, Tang-Wai D, Dickerson B, Pantelyat A, Litvan I, Boeve B, Rojas JC, Ljubenkov P, Huey E, Fox S, Kovacs GG, Boxer A, Lang A, Tartaglia MC. Evaluating the Effect of Alzheimer's Disease-Related Biomarker Change in Corticobasal Syndrome and Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. Ann Neurol 2024; 96:99-109. [PMID: 38578117 PMCID: PMC11249787 DOI: 10.1002/ana.26930] [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: 11/13/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/06/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effect of Alzheimer's disease (AD) -related biomarker change on clinical features, brain atrophy and functional connectivity of patients with corticobasal syndrome (CBS) and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). METHODS Data from patients with a clinical diagnosis of CBS, PSP, and AD and healthy controls were obtained from the 4-R-Tauopathy Neuroimaging Initiative 1 and 2, the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, and a local cohort from the Toronto Western Hospital. Patients with CBS and PSP were divided into AD-positive (CBS/PSP-AD) and AD-negative (CBS/PSP-noAD) groups based on fluid biomarkers and amyloid PET scans. Cognitive, motor, and depression scores; AD fluid biomarkers (cerebrospinal p-tau, t-tau, and amyloid-beta, and plasma ptau-217); and neuroimaging data (amyloid PET, MRI and fMRI) were collected. Clinical features, whole-brain gray matter volume and functional networks connectivity were compared across groups. RESULTS Data were analyzed from 87 CBS/PSP-noAD and 23 CBS/PSP-AD, 18 AD, and 30 healthy controls. CBS/PSP-noAD showed worse performance in comparison to CBS/PSP-AD in the PSPRS [mean(SD): 34.8(15.8) vs 23.3(11.6)] and the UPDRS scores [mean(SD): 34.2(17.0) vs 21.8(13.3)]. CBS/PSP-AD demonstrated atrophy in AD signature areas and brainstem, while CBS/PSP-noAD patients displayed atrophy in frontal and temporal areas, globus pallidus, and brainstem compared to healthy controls. The default mode network showed greatest disconnection in CBS/PSP-AD compared with CBS/PSP-no AD and controls. The thalamic network connectivity was most affected in CBS/PSP-noAD. INTERPRETATION AD biomarker positivity may modulate the clinical presentation of CBS/PSP, with evidence of distinctive structural and functional brain changes associated with the AD pathology/co-pathology. ANN NEUROL 2024;96:99-109.
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Affiliation(s)
- Indira Garcia-Cordero
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Chloe Anastassiadis
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Abeer Khoja
- University Health Network Memory Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Neurology division, Medical Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Alonso Morales-Rivero
- University Health Network Memory Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- ABC Medical Center, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Simrika Thapa
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Anna Vasilevskaya
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Carly Davenport
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Vishaal Sumra
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Blas Couto
- Rossy PSP Program, University Health Network and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- The Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease and Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Institute of Cognitive and Translational Neuroscience (INCyT-INECO-CONICET), Favaloro University Hospital, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Namita Multani
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Foad Taghdiri
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Cassandra Anor
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Karen Misquitta
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Lawren Vandevrede
- Memory and Aging Center, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Hilary Heuer
- Memory and Aging Center, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - David Tang-Wai
- Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Bradford Dickerson
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Irene Litvan
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Bradley Boeve
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA
| | - Julio C. Rojas
- Memory and Aging Center, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Peter Ljubenkov
- Memory and Aging Center, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Edward Huey
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Susan Fox
- Rossy PSP Program, University Health Network and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- The Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease and Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Gabor G. Kovacs
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Rossy PSP Program, University Health Network and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- The Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease and Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Adam Boxer
- Memory and Aging Center, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA
| | - Anthony Lang
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Rossy PSP Program, University Health Network and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- The Edmond J. Safra Program in Parkinson’s Disease and Morton and Gloria Shulman Movement Disorders Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - M. Carmela Tartaglia
- Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- University Health Network Memory Clinic, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Rossy PSP Program, University Health Network and the University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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13
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Dolci G, Cruciani F, Rahaman MA, Abrol A, Chen J, Fu Z, Galazzo IB, Menegaz G, Calhoun VD. An interpretable generative multimodal neuroimaging-genomics framework for decoding Alzheimer's disease. ARXIV 2024:arXiv:2406.13292v1. [PMID: 38947922 PMCID: PMC11213156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/02/2024]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of dementia, affecting millions worldwide with a progressive decline in cognitive abilities. The AD continuum encompasses a prodormal stage known as Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), where patients may either progress to AD (MCIc) or remain stable (MCInc). Understanding the underlying mechanisms of AD requires complementary analysis derived from different data sources, leading to the development of multimodal deep learning models. In this study, we leveraged structural and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (sMRI/fMRI) to investigate the disease-induced grey matter and functional network connectivity changes. Moreover, considering AD's strong genetic component, we introduce Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) as a third channel. Given such diverse inputs, missing one or more modalities is a typical concern of multimodal methods. We hence propose a novel deep learning based classification framework where generative module employing Cycle Generative Adversarial Networks (cGAN) was adopted to impute missing data within the latent space. Additionally, we adopted an Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) method, Integrated Gradients (IG), to extract input features relevance, enhancing our understanding of the learned representations. Two critical tasks were addressed: AD detection and MCI conversion prediction. Experimental results showed that our framework was able to reach the state-of-the-art in the classification of CN vs AD reaching an average test accuracy of 0.926 ± 0.02. For the MCInc vs MCIc task, we achieved an average prediction accuracy of 0.711 ± 0.01 using the pre-trained model for CN and AD. The interpretability analysis revealed that the classification performance was led by significant grey matter modulations in cortical and subcortical brain areas well known for their association with AD. Moreover, impairments in sensory-motor and visual resting state network connectivity along the disease continuum, as well as mutations in SNPs defining biological processes linked to amyloid-beta and cholesterol formation clearance and regulation, were identified as contributors to the achieved performance. Overall, our integrative deep learning approach shows promise for AD detection and MCI prediction, while shading light on important biological insights.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgio Dolci
- Department of Engineering for Innovation Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Federica Cruciani
- Department of Engineering for Innovation Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
| | - Md Abdur Rahaman
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Anees Abrol
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jiayu Chen
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Zening Fu
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | - Gloria Menegaz
- Department of Engineering for Innovation Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
| | - Vince D Calhoun
- Tri-Institutional Center for Translational Research in Neuroimaging and Data Science (TReNDS), Georgia State University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
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Tang R, Franz CE, Hauger RL, Dale AM, Dorros SM, Eyler LT, Fennema-Notestine C, Hagler DJ, Lyons MJ, Panizzon MS, Puckett OK, Williams ME, Elman JA, Kremen WS. Early Cortical Microstructural Changes in Aging Are Linked to Vulnerability to Alzheimer's Disease Pathology. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY. COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2024:S2451-9022(24)00158-7. [PMID: 38878863 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2024.05.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2024] [Revised: 05/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/29/2024] [Indexed: 08/15/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early identification of Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk is critical for improving treatment success. Cortical thickness is a macrostructural measure used to assess neurodegeneration in AD. However, cortical microstructural changes appear to precede macrostructural atrophy and may improve early risk identification. Currently, whether cortical microstructural changes in aging are linked to vulnerability to AD pathophysiology remains unclear in nonclinical populations, who are precisely the target for early risk identification. METHODS In 194 adults, we calculated magnetic resonance imaging-derived maps of changes in cortical mean diffusivity (microstructure) and cortical thickness (macrostructure) over 5 to 6 years (mean age: time 1 = 61.82 years; time 2 = 67.48 years). Episodic memory was assessed using 3 well-established tests. We obtained positron emission tomography-derived maps of AD pathology deposition (amyloid-β, tau) and neurotransmitter receptors (cholinergic, glutamatergic) implicated in AD pathophysiology. Spatial correlational analyses were used to compare pattern similarity among maps. RESULTS Spatial patterns of cortical macrostructural changes resembled patterns of cortical organization sensitive to age-related processes (r = -0.31, p < .05), whereas microstructural changes resembled the patterns of tau deposition in AD (r = 0.39, p = .038). Individuals with patterns of microstructural changes that more closely resembled stereotypical tau deposition exhibited greater memory decline (β = 0.22, p = .029). Microstructural changes and AD pathology deposition were enriched in areas with greater densities of cholinergic and glutamatergic receptors (ps < .05). CONCLUSIONS Patterns of cortical microstructural changes were more AD-like than patterns of macrostructural changes, which appeared to reflect more general aging processes. Microstructural changes may better inform early risk prediction efforts as a sensitive measure of vulnerability to pathological processes prior to overt atrophy and cognitive decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rongxiang Tang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California.
| | - Carol E Franz
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Richard L Hauger
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, California
| | - Anders M Dale
- Department of Radiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Stephen M Dorros
- Department of Radiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Lisa T Eyler
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Desert Pacific Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, California
| | - Christine Fennema-Notestine
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Department of Radiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Donald J Hagler
- Department of Radiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Michael J Lyons
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Matthew S Panizzon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Olivia K Puckett
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - McKenna E Williams
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, San Diego State University/University of California San Diego, San Diego, California
| | - Jeremy A Elman
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - William S Kremen
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California; Center for Behavior Genetics of Aging, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
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15
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Nabizadeh F. Disruption in functional networks mediated tau spreading in Alzheimer's disease. Brain Commun 2024; 6:fcae198. [PMID: 38978728 PMCID: PMC11227975 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcae198] [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: 01/18/2024] [Revised: 04/27/2024] [Accepted: 06/07/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease may be conceptualized as a 'disconnection syndrome', characterized by the breakdown of neural connectivity within the brain as a result of amyloid-beta plaques, tau neurofibrillary tangles and other factors leading to progressive degeneration and shrinkage of neurons, along with synaptic dysfunction. It has been suggested that misfolded tau proteins spread through functional connections (known as 'prion-like' properties of tau). However, the local effect of tau spreading on the synaptic function and communication between regions is not well understood. I aimed to investigate how the spreading of tau aggregates through connections can locally influence functional connectivity. In total, the imaging data of 211 participants including 117 amyloid-beta-negative non-demented and 94 amyloid-beta-positive non-demented participants were recruited from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. Furthermore, normative resting-state functional MRI connectomes were used to model tau spreading through functional connections, and functional MRI of the included participants was used to determine the effect of tau spreading on functional connectivity. I found that lower functional connectivity to tau epicentres is associated with tau spreading through functional connections in both amyloid-beta-negative and amyloid-beta-positive participants. Also, amyloid-beta-PET in tau epicentres mediated the association of tau spreading and functional connectivity to epicentres suggesting a partial mediating effect of amyloid-beta deposition in tau epicentres on the local effect of tau spreading on functional connectivity. My findings provide strong support for the notion that tau spreading through connection is locally associated with disrupted functional connectivity between tau epicentre and non-epicentre regions independent of amyloid-beta pathology. Also, I defined several groups based on the relationship between tau spreading and functional disconnection, which provides quantitative assessment to investigate susceptibility or resilience to functional disconnection related to tau spreading. I showed that amyloid-beta, other copathologies and the apolipoprotein E epsilon 4 allele can be a leading factor towards vulnerability to tau relative functional disconnection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fardin Nabizadeh
- School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 441265421414, Iran
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16
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Ottoy J, Kang MS, Tan JXM, Boone L, Vos de Wael R, Park BY, Bezgin G, Lussier FZ, Pascoal TA, Rahmouni N, Stevenson J, Fernandez Arias J, Therriault J, Hong SJ, Stefanovic B, McLaurin J, Soucy JP, Gauthier S, Bernhardt BC, Black SE, Rosa-Neto P, Goubran M. Tau follows principal axes of functional and structural brain organization in Alzheimer's disease. Nat Commun 2024; 15:5031. [PMID: 38866759 PMCID: PMC11169286 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49300-2] [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: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a brain network disorder where pathological proteins accumulate through networks and drive cognitive decline. Yet, the role of network connectivity in facilitating this accumulation remains unclear. Using in-vivo multimodal imaging, we show that the distribution of tau and reactive microglia in humans follows spatial patterns of connectivity variation, the so-called gradients of brain organization. Notably, less distinct connectivity patterns ("gradient contraction") are associated with cognitive decline in regions with greater tau, suggesting an interaction between reduced network differentiation and tau on cognition. Furthermore, by modeling tau in subject-specific gradient space, we demonstrate that tau accumulation in the frontoparietal and temporo-occipital cortices is associated with greater baseline tau within their functionally and structurally connected hubs, respectively. Our work unveils a role for both functional and structural brain organization in pathology accumulation in AD, and supports subject-specific gradient space as a promising tool to map disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Ottoy
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Min Su Kang
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | | | - Lyndon Boone
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Reinder Vos de Wael
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Bo-Yong Park
- Department of Data Science, Inha University, Incheon, Republic of Korea
- Center for Neuroscience Imaging Research, Institute for Basic Science, Suwon, Republic of Korea
| | - Gleb Bezgin
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Neuroinformatics for Personalized Medicine lab, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Firoza Z Lussier
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Tharick A Pascoal
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Nesrine Rahmouni
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Jenna Stevenson
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Jaime Fernandez Arias
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Joseph Therriault
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Seok-Jun Hong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, Republic of Korea
| | - Bojana Stefanovic
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Physical Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - JoAnne McLaurin
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Biological Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Jean-Paul Soucy
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Serge Gauthier
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Boris C Bernhardt
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Sandra E Black
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Medicine (Division of Neurology), University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Pedro Rosa-Neto
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Translational Neuroimaging laboratory, McGill Centre for Studies in Aging, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Maged Goubran
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Physical Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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17
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Ravikumar S, Denning AE, Lim S, Chung E, Sadeghpour N, Ittyerah R, Wisse LEM, Das SR, Xie L, Robinson JL, Schuck T, Lee EB, Detre JA, Tisdall MD, Prabhakaran K, Mizsei G, de Onzono Martin MMI, Arroyo Jiménez MDM, Mũnoz M, Marcos Rabal MDP, Cebada Sánchez S, Delgado González JC, de la Rosa Prieto C, Irwin DJ, Wolk DA, Insausti R, Yushkevich PA. Postmortem imaging reveals patterns of medial temporal lobe vulnerability to tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4803. [PMID: 38839876 PMCID: PMC11153494 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49205-0] [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: 10/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Our current understanding of the spread and neurodegenerative effects of tau neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) within the medial temporal lobe (MTL) during the early stages of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is limited by the presence of confounding non-AD pathologies and the two-dimensional (2-D) nature of conventional histology studies. Here, we combine ex vivo MRI and serial histological imaging from 25 human MTL specimens to present a detailed, 3-D characterization of quantitative NFT burden measures in the space of a high-resolution, ex vivo atlas with cytoarchitecturally-defined subregion labels, that can be used to inform future in vivo neuroimaging studies. Average maps show a clear anterior to poster gradient in NFT distribution and a precise, spatial pattern with highest levels of NFTs found not just within the transentorhinal region but also the cornu ammonis (CA1) subfield. Additionally, we identify granular MTL regions where measures of neurodegeneration are likely to be linked to NFTs specifically, and thus potentially more sensitive as early AD biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sadhana Ravikumar
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - Amanda E Denning
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sydney Lim
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Eunice Chung
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | - Ranjit Ittyerah
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Laura E M Wisse
- Institute for Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Sandhitsu R Das
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Long Xie
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - John L Robinson
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Theresa Schuck
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Edward B Lee
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - John A Detre
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - M Dylan Tisdall
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | - Gabor Mizsei
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | | | - Monica Mũnoz
- Human Neuroanatomy Laboratory, University of Castilla La Mancha, Albacete, Spain
| | | | | | | | | | - David J Irwin
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - David A Wolk
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ricardo Insausti
- Human Neuroanatomy Laboratory, University of Castilla La Mancha, Albacete, Spain
| | - Paul A Yushkevich
- Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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18
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Gatto RG, Pham NTT, Duffy JR, Clark HM, Utianski RL, Botha H, Machulda MM, Lowe VJ, Schwarz CG, Jack CR, Josephs KA, Whitwell JL. Multimodal cross-examination of progressive apraxia of speech by diffusion tensor imaging-based tractography and Tau-PET scans. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26704. [PMID: 38825988 PMCID: PMC11144950 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26704] [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: 01/23/2024] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Progressive apraxia of speech (PAOS) is a 4R tauopathy characterized by difficulties with motor speech planning. Neurodegeneration in PAOS targets the premotor cortex, particularly the supplementary motor area (SMA), with degeneration of white matter (WM) tracts connecting premotor and motor cortices and Broca's area observed on diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). We aimed to assess flortaucipir uptake across speech-language-related WM tracts identified using DTI tractography in PAOS. Twenty-two patients with PAOS and 26 matched healthy controls were recruited by the Neurodegenerative Research Group (NRG) and underwent MRI and flortaucipir-PET. The patient population included patients with primary progressive apraxia of speech (PPAOS) and non-fluent variant/agrammatic primary progressive aphasia (agPPA). Flortaucipir PET scans and DTI were coregistered using rigid registration with a mutual information cost function in subject space. Alignments between DTI and flortaucipir PET were inspected in all cases. Whole-brain tractography was calculated using deterministic algorithms by a tractography reconstruction tool (DSI-studio) and specific tracts were identified using an automatic fiber tracking atlas-based method. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and flortaucipir standardized uptake value ratios (SUVRs) were averaged across the frontal aslant tract, arcuate fasciculi, inferior frontal-occipital fasciculus, inferior and middle longitudinal fasciculi, as well as the SMA commissural fibers. Reduced FA (p < .0001) and elevated flortaucipir SUVR (p = .0012) were observed in PAOS cases compared to controls across all combined WM tracts. For flortaucipir SUVR, the greatest differentiation of PAOS from controls was achieved with the SMA commissural fibers (area under the receiver operator characteristic curve [AUROC] = 0.83), followed by the left arcuate fasciculus (AUROC = 0.75) and left frontal aslant tract (AUROC = 0.71). Our findings demonstrate that flortaucipir uptake is increased across WM tracts related to speech/language difficulties in PAOS.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Hugo Botha
- Department of NeurologyMayo ClinicRochesterMinnesotaUSA
| | - Mary M. Machulda
- Department of Psychiatry and PsychologyMayo ClinicRochesterMinnesotaUSA
| | - Val J. Lowe
- Department of RadiologyMayo ClinicRochesterMinnesotaUSA
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19
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Alexandersen CG, Goriely A, Bick C. Neuronal activity induces symmetry breaking in neurodegenerative disease spreading. J Math Biol 2024; 89:3. [PMID: 38740613 DOI: 10.1007/s00285-024-02103-x] [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: 09/29/2023] [Revised: 03/01/2024] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Dynamical systems on networks typically involve several dynamical processes evolving at different timescales. For instance, in Alzheimer's disease, the spread of toxic protein throughout the brain not only disrupts neuronal activity but is also influenced by neuronal activity itself, establishing a feedback loop between the fast neuronal activity and the slow protein spreading. Motivated by the case of Alzheimer's disease, we study the multiple-timescale dynamics of a heterodimer spreading process on an adaptive network of Kuramoto oscillators. Using a minimal two-node model, we establish that heterogeneous oscillatory activity facilitates toxic outbreaks and induces symmetry breaking in the spreading patterns. We then extend the model formulation to larger networks and perform numerical simulations of the slow-fast dynamics on common network motifs and on the brain connectome. The simulations corroborate the findings from the minimal model, underscoring the significance of multiple-timescale dynamics in the modeling of neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alain Goriely
- Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
| | - Christian Bick
- Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Mathematics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam Neuroscience - Systems and Network Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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20
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Ahmadi K, Pereira JB, van Westen D, Pasternak O, Zhang F, Nilsson M, Stomrud E, Spotorno N, Hansson O. Fixel-Based Analysis Reveals Tau-Related White Matter Changes in Early Stages of Alzheimer's Disease. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0538232024. [PMID: 38565289 PMCID: PMC11063818 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0538-23.2024] [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: 03/24/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Several studies have shown white matter (WM) abnormalities in Alzheimer's disease (AD) using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Nonetheless, robust characterization of WM changes has been challenging due to the methodological limitations of DTI. We applied fixel-based analyses (FBA) to examine microscopic differences in fiber density (FD) and macroscopic changes in fiber cross-section (FC) in early stages of AD (N = 393, 212 females). FBA was also compared with DTI, free-water corrected (FW)-DTI and diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI). We further investigated the correlation of FBA and tensor-derived metrics with AD pathology and cognition. FBA metrics were decreased in the entire cingulum bundle, uncinate fasciculus and anterior thalamic radiations in Aβ-positive patients with mild cognitive impairment compared to control groups. Metrics derived from DKI, and FW-DTI showed similar alterations whereas WM degeneration detected by DTI was more widespread. Tau-PET uptake in medial temporal regions was only correlated with reduced FC mainly in the parahippocampal cingulum in Aβ-positive individuals. This tau-related WM alteration was also associated with impaired memory. Despite the spatially extensive between-group differences in DTI-metrics, the link between WM and tau aggregation was only revealed using FBA metrics implying high sensitivity but low specificity of DTI-based measures in identifying subtle tau-related WM degeneration. No relationship was found between amyloid load and any diffusion-MRI measures. Our results indicate that early tau-related WM alterations in AD are due to macrostructural changes specifically captured by FBA metrics. Thus, future studies assessing the effects of AD pathology in WM tracts should consider using FBA metrics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khazar Ahmadi
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum 44801, Germany
| | - Joana B Pereira
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
- Division of Neuro, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm 17176, Sweden
| | - Danielle van Westen
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
- Diagnostic Radiology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22185, Sweden
| | - Ofer Pasternak
- Departments of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
- Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02114
| | - Fan Zhang
- Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
| | - Markus Nilsson
- Diagnostic Radiology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22185, Sweden
- Department of Medical Radiation Physics, Lund University, Lund 22185, Sweden
| | - Erik Stomrud
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
- Memory Clinic, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö 21428, Sweden
| | - Nicola Spotorno
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
| | - Oskar Hansson
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund 22362, Sweden
- Memory Clinic, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö 21428, Sweden
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21
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Wang M, Lu J, Zhang Y, Zhang Q, Wang L, Wu P, Brendel M, Rominger A, Shi K, Zhao Q, Jiang J, Zuo C. Characterization of tau propagation pattern and cascading hypometabolism from functional connectivity in Alzheimer's disease. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26689. [PMID: 38703095 PMCID: PMC11069321 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26689] [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: 01/17/2024] [Revised: 03/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Tau pathology and its spatial propagation in Alzheimer's disease (AD) play crucial roles in the neurodegenerative cascade leading to dementia. However, the underlying mechanisms linking tau spreading to glucose metabolism remain elusive. To address this, we aimed to examine the association between pathologic tau aggregation, functional connectivity, and cascading glucose metabolism and further explore the underlying interplay mechanisms. In this prospective cohort study, we enrolled 79 participants with 18F-Florzolotau positron emission tomography (PET), 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET, resting-state functional, and anatomical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images in the hospital-based Shanghai Memory Study. We employed generalized linear regression and correlation analyses to assess the associations between Florzolotau accumulation, functional connectivity, and glucose metabolism in whole-brain and network-specific manners. Causal mediation analysis was used to evaluate whether functional connectivity mediates the association between pathologic tau and cascading glucose metabolism. We examined 22 normal controls and 57 patients with AD. In the AD group, functional connectivity was associated with Florzolotau covariance (β = .837, r = 0.472, p < .001) and glucose covariance (β = 1.01, r = 0.499, p < .001). Brain regions with higher tau accumulation tend to be connected to other regions with high tau accumulation through functional connectivity or metabolic connectivity. Mediation analyses further suggest that functional connectivity partially modulates the influence of tau accumulation on downstream glucose metabolism (mediation proportion: 49.9%). Pathologic tau may affect functionally connected neurons directly, triggering downstream glucose metabolism changes. This study sheds light on the intricate relationship between tau pathology, functional connectivity, and downstream glucose metabolism, providing critical insights into AD pathophysiology and potential therapeutic targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Wang
- School of Life SciencesShanghai UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Jiaying Lu
- Department of Nuclear Medicine & PET Center, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Center for Neurological Disorders, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Ying Zhang
- School of Life SciencesShanghai UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Qi Zhang
- School of Life SciencesShanghai UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Luyao Wang
- School of Life SciencesShanghai UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Ping Wu
- Department of Nuclear Medicine & PET Center, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Center for Neurological Disorders, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
| | | | - Axel Rominger
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, InselspitalBern University Hospital, University of BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Kuangyu Shi
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, InselspitalBern University Hospital, University of BernBernSwitzerland
- Computer Aided Medical Procedures, School of Computation, Information and TechnologyTechnical University of MunichMunichGermany
| | - Qianhua Zhao
- National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Center for Neurological Disorders, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- Department of Neurology, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Jiehui Jiang
- School of Life SciencesShanghai UniversityShanghaiChina
| | - Chuantao Zuo
- Department of Nuclear Medicine & PET Center, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- National Center for Neurological Disorders, Huashan HospitalFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
- Human Phenome InstituteFudan UniversityShanghaiChina
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22
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Santiago-Ruiz AN, Hugelier S, Bond CR, Lee EB, Lakadamyali M. Super-Resolution Imaging Uncovers Nanoscale Tau Aggregate Hyperphosphorylation Patterns in Human Alzheimer's Disease Brain Tissue. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.24.590893. [PMID: 38712162 PMCID: PMC11071528 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.24.590893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
Tau aggregation plays a critical role in Alzheimer's Disease (AD), where tau neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) are a key pathological hallmark. While much attention has been given to NFTs, emerging evidence underscores nano-sized pre-NFT tau aggregates as potentially toxic entities in AD. By leveraging DNA-PAINT super-resolution microscopy, we visualized and quantified nanoscale tau aggregates (nano-aggregates) in human postmortem brain tissues from intermediate and advanced AD, and Primary Age-Related Tauopathy (PART). Nano-aggregates were predominant across cases, with AD exhibiting a higher burden compared to PART. Hyperphosphorylated tau residues (p-T231, p-T181, and p-S202/T205) were present within nano-aggregates across all AD Braak stages and PART. Moreover, nano-aggregates displayed morphological differences between PART and AD, and exhibited distinct hyperphosphorylation patterns in advanced AD. These findings suggest that changes in nano-aggregate morphology and hyperphosphorylation patterns may exacerbate tau aggregation and AD progression. The ability to detect and profile nanoscale tau aggregates in human brain tissue opens new avenues for studying the molecular underpinnings of tauopathies.
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23
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Katsumi Y, Howe IA, Eckbo R, Wong B, Quimby M, Hochberg D, McGinnis SM, Putcha D, Wolk DA, Touroutoglou A, Dickerson BC. Default mode network tau predicts future clinical decline in atypical early Alzheimer's disease. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2024:2024.04.17.24305620. [PMID: 38699357 PMCID: PMC11065041 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.17.24305620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2024]
Abstract
Identifying individuals with early stage Alzheimer's disease (AD) at greater risk of steeper clinical decline would allow professionals and loved ones to make better-informed medical, support, and life planning decisions. Despite accumulating evidence on the clinical prognostic value of tau PET in typical late-onset amnestic AD, its utility in predicting clinical decline in individuals with atypical forms of AD remains unclear. In this study, we examined the relationship between baseline tau PET signal and the rate of subsequent clinical decline in a sample of 48 A+/T+/N+ patients with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to AD with atypical clinical phenotypes (Posterior Cortical Atrophy, logopenic variant Primary Progressive Aphasia, and amnestic syndrome with multi-domain impairment and age of onset < 65 years). All patients underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), tau (18F-Flortaucipir) PET, and amyloid (either 18F-Florbetaben or 11C-Pittsburgh Compound B) PET scans at baseline. Each patient's longitudinal clinical decline was assessed by calculating the annualized change in the Clinical Dementia Rating Sum-of-Boxes (CDR-SB) scores from baseline to follow-up (mean time interval = 14.55 ± 3.97 months). Our sample of early atypical AD patients showed an increase in CDR-SB by 1.18 ± 1.25 points per year: t(47) = 6.56, p < .001, d = 0.95. These AD patients showed prominent baseline tau burden in posterior cortical regions including the major nodes of the default mode network, including the angular gyrus, posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus, and lateral temporal cortex. Greater baseline tau in the broader default mode network predicted faster clinical decline. Tau in the default mode network was the strongest predictor of clinical decline, outperforming baseline clinical impairment, tau in other functional networks, and the magnitude of cortical atrophy and amyloid burden in the default mode network. Overall, these findings point to the contribution of baseline tau burden within the default mode network of the cerebral cortex to predicting the magnitude of clinical decline in a sample of atypical early AD patients one year later. This simple measure based on a tau PET scan could aid the development of a personalized prognostic, monitoring, and treatment plan tailored to each individual patient, which would help clinicians not only predict the natural evolution of the disease but also estimate the effect of disease-modifying therapies on slowing subsequent clinical decline given the patient's tau burden while still early in the disease course.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuta Katsumi
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Inola A Howe
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Ryan Eckbo
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Bonnie Wong
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Megan Quimby
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Daisy Hochberg
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Scott M McGinnis
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Center for Brain Mind Medicine, Department of Neurology, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Deepti Putcha
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Center for Brain Mind Medicine, Department of Neurology, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - David A Wolk
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Alexandra Touroutoglou
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
- Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Bradford C Dickerson
- Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
- Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
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24
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Basheer N, Buee L, Brion JP, Smolek T, Muhammadi MK, Hritz J, Hromadka T, Dewachter I, Wegmann S, Landrieu I, Novak P, Mudher A, Zilka N. Shaping the future of preclinical development of successful disease-modifying drugs against Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review of tau propagation models. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2024; 12:52. [PMID: 38576010 PMCID: PMC10993623 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-024-01748-5] [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: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 04/06/2024] Open
Abstract
The transcellular propagation of the aberrantly modified protein tau along the functional brain network is a key hallmark of Alzheimer's disease and related tauopathies. Inoculation-based tau propagation models can recapitulate the stereotypical spread of tau and reproduce various types of tau inclusions linked to specific tauopathy, albeit with varying degrees of fidelity. With this systematic review, we underscore the significance of judicious selection and meticulous functional, biochemical, and biophysical characterization of various tau inocula. Furthermore, we highlight the necessity of choosing suitable animal models and inoculation sites, along with the critical need for validation of fibrillary pathology using confirmatory staining, to accurately recapitulate disease-specific inclusions. As a practical guide, we put forth a framework for establishing a benchmark of inoculation-based tau propagation models that holds promise for use in preclinical testing of disease-modifying drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neha Basheer
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Luc Buee
- Inserm, CHU Lille, CNRS, LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, University of Lille, 59000, Lille, France.
| | - Jean-Pierre Brion
- Faculty of Medicine, Laboratory of Histology, Alzheimer and Other Tauopathies Research Group (CP 620), ULB Neuroscience Institute (UNI), Université Libre de Bruxelles, 808, Route de Lennik, 1070, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Tomas Smolek
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Muhammad Khalid Muhammadi
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Jozef Hritz
- CEITEC Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 625 00, Brno, Czech Republic
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tomas Hromadka
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Ilse Dewachter
- Biomedical Research Institute, BIOMED, Hasselt University, 3500, Hasselt, Belgium
| | - Susanne Wegmann
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany
- Einstein Center for Neurosciences Berlin, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Isabelle Landrieu
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, 59000, Lille, France
- Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, University of Lille, 59000, Lille, France
| | - Petr Novak
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Amritpal Mudher
- School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Environment and Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK
| | - Norbert Zilka
- Institute of Neuroimmunology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia.
- AXON Neuroscience R&D Services SE, Dubravska Cesta 9, 845 10, Bratislava, Slovakia.
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25
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Abuwarda H, Trainer A, Horien C, Shen X, Ju S, Constable RT, Fredericks C. Whole-brain functional connectivity predicts groupwise and sex-specific tau PET in preclincal Alzheimer's disease. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.02.587791. [PMID: 38617320 PMCID: PMC11014551 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.02.587791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/16/2024]
Abstract
Preclinical Alzheimer's disease, characterized by the initial accumulation of amyloid and tau pathologies without symptoms, presents a critical opportunity for early intervention. Yet, the interplay between these pathological markers and the functional connectome during this window remains understudied. We therefore set out to elucidate the relationship between the functional connectome and amyloid and tau, as assessed by PET imaging, in individuals with preclinical AD using connectome-based predictive modeling (CPM). We found that functional connectivity predicts tau PET, outperforming amyloid PET models. These models were predominantly governed by linear relationships between functional connectivity and tau. Tau models demonstrated a stronger correlation to global connectivity than underlying tau PET. Furthermore, we identify sex-based differences in the ability to predict regional tau, without any underlying differences in tau PET or global connectivity. Taken together, these results suggest tau is more closely coupled to functional connectivity than amyloid in preclinical disease, and that multimodal predictive modeling approaches stand to identify unique relationships that any one modality may be insufficient to discern.
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26
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Mortelecque J, Zejneli O, Bégard S, Simões MC, ElHajjar L, Nguyen M, Cantrelle FX, Hanoulle X, Rain JC, Colin M, Gomes CM, Buée L, Landrieu I, Danis C, Dupré E. A selection and optimization strategy for single-domain antibodies targeting the PHF6 linear peptide within the tau intrinsically disordered protein. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:107163. [PMID: 38484799 PMCID: PMC11007443 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The use of variable domain of the heavy-chain of the heavy-chain-only antibodies (VHHs) as disease-modifying biomolecules in neurodegenerative disorders holds promises, including targeting of aggregation-sensitive proteins. Exploitation of their clinical values depends however on the capacity to deliver VHHs with optimal physico-chemical properties for their specific context of use. We described previously a VHH with high therapeutic potential in a family of neurodegenerative diseases called tauopathies. The activity of this promising parent VHH named Z70 relies on its binding within the central region of the tau protein. Accordingly, we carried out random mutagenesis followed by yeast two-hybrid screening to obtain optimized variants. The VHHs selected from this initial screen targeted the same epitope as VHH Z70 as shown using NMR spectroscopy and had indeed improved binding affinities according to dissociation constant values obtained by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. The improved affinities can be partially rationalized based on three-dimensional structures and NMR data of three complexes consisting of an optimized VHH and a peptide containing the tau epitope. Interestingly, the ability of the VHH variants to inhibit tau aggregation and seeding could not be predicted from their affinity alone. We indeed showed that the in vitro and in cellulo VHH stabilities are other limiting key factors to their efficacy. Our results demonstrate that only a complete pipeline of experiments, here described, permits a rational selection of optimized VHH variants, resulting in the selection of VHH variants with higher affinities and/or acting against tau seeding in cell models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justine Mortelecque
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
| | - Orgeta Zejneli
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU-Lille, U1172 - LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France
| | - Séverine Bégard
- Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU-Lille, U1172 - LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France
| | - Margarida C Simões
- BioISI - Instituto de Biosistemas e Ciências Integrativas, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal; Departamento de Química e Bioquímica, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Lea ElHajjar
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
| | - Marine Nguyen
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
| | - François-Xavier Cantrelle
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
| | - Xavier Hanoulle
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France
| | | | - Morvane Colin
- Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU-Lille, U1172 - LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France
| | - Cláudio M Gomes
- BioISI - Instituto de Biosistemas e Ciências Integrativas, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal; Departamento de Química e Bioquímica, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Luc Buée
- Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU-Lille, U1172 - LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France.
| | - Isabelle Landrieu
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France.
| | - Clément Danis
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU-Lille, U1172 - LilNCog - Lille Neuroscience & Cognition, Lille, France
| | - Elian Dupré
- CNRS EMR9002 - BSI - Integrative Structural Biology, Lille, France; Univ. Lille, Inserm, CHU Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1167 - RID-AGE - Risk Factors and Molecular Determinants of Aging-Related Diseases, Lille, France.
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27
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Décarie-Labbé L, Dialahy IZ, Corriveau-Lecavalier N, Mellah S, Belleville S. Examining the relationship between brain activation and proxies of disease severity using quantile regression in individuals at risk of Alzheimer's disease. Cortex 2024; 173:234-247. [PMID: 38432175 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2024.01.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2023] [Revised: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Previous studies have reported a pattern of hyperactivation in the pre-dementia phase of Alzheimer's disease (AD), followed by hypoactivation in later stages of the disease. This pattern was modeled as an inverse U-shape function between activation and markers of disease severity. In this study, we used quantile regression to model the association between task-related brain activation in AD signature regions and three markers of disease severity (hippocampal volume, cortical thickness, and associative memory). This approach offers distinct advantages over standard regression models as it analyzes the relationship between brain activation and disease severity across various levels of brain activation. Participants were 54 older adults with subjective cognitive decline+ (SCD+) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) from the CIMA-Q cohort. The analysis revealed an inverse U-shape quadratic function depicting the relationship between disease severity markers and the activation of the left superior parietal region, while a linear relationship was observed for activation of the hippocampal and temporal regions. Quantile differences were observed for temporal and parietal activation, with more pronounced effects observed in the higher quantiles of activation. When comparing quantiles, we found that higher quantile of activation featured a greater number of individuals with SCD+ compared to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Results are globally consistent with the presence of an inverse-U shape function of activation in relation to disease severity. They study also underscores the utility of employing quantile regression modeling as the modeling approach revealed the presence of non-homogeneous effects across various quantiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurie Décarie-Labbé
- Research Center, Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Isaora Zefania Dialahy
- Research Center, Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Samira Mellah
- Research Center, Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Sylvie Belleville
- Research Center, Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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28
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Caeyenberghs K, Imms P, Irimia A, Monti MM, Esopenko C, de Souza NL, Dominguez D JF, Newsome MR, Dobryakova E, Cwiek A, Mullin HAC, Kim NJ, Mayer AR, Adamson MM, Bickart K, Breedlove KM, Dennis EL, Disner SG, Haswell C, Hodges CB, Hoskinson KR, Johnson PK, Königs M, Li LM, Liebel SW, Livny A, Morey RA, Muir AM, Olsen A, Razi A, Su M, Tate DF, Velez C, Wilde EA, Zielinski BA, Thompson PM, Hillary FG. ENIGMA's simple seven: Recommendations to enhance the reproducibility of resting-state fMRI in traumatic brain injury. Neuroimage Clin 2024; 42:103585. [PMID: 38531165 PMCID: PMC10982609 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2024.103585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) provides researchers and clinicians with a powerful tool to examine functional connectivity across large-scale brain networks, with ever-increasing applications to the study of neurological disorders, such as traumatic brain injury (TBI). While rsfMRI holds unparalleled promise in systems neurosciences, its acquisition and analytical methodology across research groups is variable, resulting in a literature that is challenging to integrate and interpret. The focus of this narrative review is to address the primary methodological issues including investigator decision points in the application of rsfMRI to study the consequences of TBI. As part of the ENIGMA Brain Injury working group, we have collaborated to identify a minimum set of recommendations that are designed to produce results that are reliable, harmonizable, and reproducible for the TBI imaging research community. Part one of this review provides the results of a literature search of current rsfMRI studies of TBI, highlighting key design considerations and data processing pipelines. Part two outlines seven data acquisition, processing, and analysis recommendations with the goal of maximizing study reliability and between-site comparability, while preserving investigator autonomy. Part three summarizes new directions and opportunities for future rsfMRI studies in TBI patients. The goal is to galvanize the TBI community to gain consensus for a set of rigorous and reproducible methods, and to increase analytical transparency and data sharing to address the reproducibility crisis in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Caeyenberghs
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
| | - Phoebe Imms
- Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Andrei Irimia
- Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering, Andrew & Erna Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Quantitative & Computational Biology, Dana and David Dornsife College of Arts & Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Martin M Monti
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, USA; Brain Injury Research Center (BIRC), Department of Neurosurgery, UCLA, USA.
| | - Carrie Esopenko
- Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA.
| | - Nicola L de Souza
- Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA.
| | - Juan F Dominguez D
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, School of Psychology, Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
| | - Mary R Newsome
- Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, USA; H. Ben Taub Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Ekaterina Dobryakova
- Center for Traumatic Brain Injury, Kessler Foundation, East Hanover, NJ, USA; Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, USA.
| | - Andrew Cwiek
- Department of Psychology, Penn State University, State College, PA, USA.
| | - Hollie A C Mullin
- Department of Psychology, Penn State University, State College, PA, USA.
| | - Nicholas J Kim
- Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering, Andrew & Erna Viterbi School of Engineering, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Andrew R Mayer
- Mind Research Network, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
| | - Maheen M Adamson
- Women's Operational Military Exposure Network (WOMEN) & Rehabilitation Department, VA Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA, USA; Rehabilitation Service, VA Palo Alto, Palo Alto, CA, USA; Neurosurgery, Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
| | - Kevin Bickart
- UCLA Steve Tisch BrainSPORT Program, USA; Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, USA.
| | - Katherine M Breedlove
- Center for Clinical Spectroscopy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Emily L Dennis
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Seth G Disner
- Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
| | - Courtney Haswell
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
| | - Cooper B Hodges
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA.
| | - Kristen R Hoskinson
- Center for Biobehavioral Health, The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA; Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, OH, USA.
| | - Paula K Johnson
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA.
| | - Marsh Königs
- Emma Children's Hospital, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, Emma Neuroscience Group, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Reproduction and Development, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Lucia M Li
- C3NL, Imperial College London, United Kingdom; UK DRI Centre for Health Care and Technology, Imperial College London, United Kingdom.
| | - Spencer W Liebel
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Abigail Livny
- Division of Diagnostic Imaging, Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel.
| | - Rajendra A Morey
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; Duke-UNC Brain Imaging and Analysis Center, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center, Durham, NC, USA.
| | - Alexandra M Muir
- Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, USA.
| | - Alexander Olsen
- Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway; Clinic of Rehabilitation, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway; NorHEAD - Norwegian Centre for Headache Research, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Adeel Razi
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia; Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, WC1N 3AR London, United Kingdom; CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars Program, CIFAR, Toronto, ON, Canada.
| | - Matthew Su
- H. Ben Taub Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
| | - David F Tate
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Carmen Velez
- TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Elisabeth A Wilde
- H. Ben Taub Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA; TBI and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA; George E. Wahlen Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Brandon A Zielinski
- Departments of Pediatrics, Neurology, and Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Departments of Pediatrics, Neurology, and Radiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Paul M Thompson
- Imaging Genetics Center, Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging & Informatics Institute, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, USA.
| | - Frank G Hillary
- Department of Psychology, Penn State University, State College, PA, USA; Department of Neurology, Hershey Medical Center, PA, USA.
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29
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Lee J, Burkett BJ, Min HK, Senjem ML, Dicks E, Corriveau-Lecavalier N, Mester CT, Wiste HJ, Lundt ES, Murray ME, Nguyen AT, Reichard RR, Botha H, Graff-Radford J, Barnard LR, Gunter JL, Schwarz CG, Kantarci K, Knopman DS, Boeve BF, Lowe VJ, Petersen RC, Jack CR, Jones DT. Synthesizing images of tau pathology from cross-modal neuroimaging using deep learning. Brain 2024; 147:980-995. [PMID: 37804318 PMCID: PMC10907092 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad346] [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: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/24/2023] [Indexed: 10/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Given the prevalence of dementia and the development of pathology-specific disease-modifying therapies, high-value biomarker strategies to inform medical decision-making are critical. In vivo tau-PET is an ideal target as a biomarker for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis and treatment outcome measure. However, tau-PET is not currently widely accessible to patients compared to other neuroimaging methods. In this study, we present a convolutional neural network (CNN) model that imputes tau-PET images from more widely available cross-modality imaging inputs. Participants (n = 1192) with brain T1-weighted MRI (T1w), fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-PET, amyloid-PET and tau-PET were included. We found that a CNN model can impute tau-PET images with high accuracy, the highest being for the FDG-based model followed by amyloid-PET and T1w. In testing implications of artificial intelligence-imputed tau-PET, only the FDG-based model showed a significant improvement of performance in classifying tau positivity and diagnostic groups compared to the original input data, suggesting that application of the model could enhance the utility of the metabolic images. The interpretability experiment revealed that the FDG- and T1w-based models utilized the non-local input from physically remote regions of interest to estimate the tau-PET, but this was not the case for the Pittsburgh compound B-based model. This implies that the model can learn the distinct biological relationship between FDG-PET, T1w and tau-PET from the relationship between amyloid-PET and tau-PET. Our study suggests that extending neuroimaging's use with artificial intelligence to predict protein specific pathologies has great potential to inform emerging care models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeyeon Lee
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
| | - Brian J Burkett
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Hoon-Ki Min
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Matthew L Senjem
- Department of Information Technology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Ellen Dicks
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - Carly T Mester
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Heather J Wiste
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Emily S Lundt
- Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Melissa E Murray
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL 32224, USA
| | - Aivi T Nguyen
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Ross R Reichard
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Hugo Botha
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | | | | | | | - Kejal Kantarci
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - David S Knopman
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Bradley F Boeve
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Val J Lowe
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - Clifford R Jack
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - David T Jones
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
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30
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Stouffer KM, Grande X, Düzel E, Johansson M, Creese B, Witter MP, Miller MI, Wisse LEM, Berron D. Amidst an amygdala renaissance in Alzheimer's disease. Brain 2024; 147:816-829. [PMID: 38109776 PMCID: PMC10907090 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The amygdala was highlighted as an early site for neurofibrillary tau tangle pathology in Alzheimer's disease in the seminal 1991 article by Braak and Braak. This knowledge has, however, only received traction recently with advances in imaging and image analysis techniques. Here, we provide a cross-disciplinary overview of pathology and neuroimaging studies on the amygdala. These studies provide strong support for an early role of the amygdala in Alzheimer's disease and the utility of imaging biomarkers of the amygdala in detecting early changes and predicting decline in cognitive functions and neuropsychiatric symptoms in early stages. We summarize the animal literature on connectivity of the amygdala, demonstrating that amygdala nuclei that show the earliest and strongest accumulation of neurofibrillary tangle pathology are those that are connected to brain regions that also show early neurofibrillary tangle accumulation. Additionally, we propose an alternative pathway of neurofibrillary tangle spreading within the medial temporal lobe between the amygdala and the anterior hippocampus. The proposed existence of this pathway is strengthened by novel experimental data on human functional connectivity. Finally, we summarize the functional roles of the amygdala, highlighting the correspondence between neurofibrillary tangle accumulation and symptomatic profiles in Alzheimer's disease. In summary, these findings provide a new impetus for studying the amygdala in Alzheimer's disease and a unique perspective to guide further study on neurofibrillary tangle spreading and the occurrence of neuropsychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin M Stouffer
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
- Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
- Center for Imaging Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Xenia Grande
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Institute for Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto-von-Guericke University, 39106, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Emrah Düzel
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Institute for Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto-von-Guericke University, 39106, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Maurits Johansson
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences Malmö, Lund University, 205 02, Lund, Sweden
- Division of Clinical Sciences, Helsingborg, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, 221 84, Lund, Sweden
- Department of Psychiatry, Helsingborg Hospital, 252 23, Helsingborg, Sweden
| | - Byron Creese
- Department of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, EX4 4PY, Exeter, UK
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UB8 3PH, Uxbridge, UK
| | - Menno P Witter
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491, Trondheim, Norway
- KG. Jebsen Centre for Alzheimer’s Disease, NTNU Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Michael I Miller
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
- Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
- Center for Imaging Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Laura E M Wisse
- Diagnostic Radiology, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, 211 84, Lund, Sweden
| | - David Berron
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 39120, Magdeburg, Germany
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences Malmö, Lund University, 205 02, Lund, Sweden
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31
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Peters‐Founshtein G, Gazit L, Naveh T, Domachevsky L, Korczyn AD, Bernstine H, Shaharabani‐Gargir L, Groshar D, Marshall GA, Arzy S. Lost in space(s): Multimodal neuroimaging of disorientation along the Alzheimer's disease continuum. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26623. [PMID: 38488454 PMCID: PMC10941506 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 01/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Orientation is a fundamental cognitive faculty and the bedrock of the neurologic examination. Orientation is defined as the alignment between an individual's internal representation and the external world in the spatial, temporal, and social domains. While spatial disorientation is a recognized hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD), little is known about disorientation beyond space in AD. This study aimed to explore disorientation in spatial, temporal, and social domains along the AD continuum. Fifty-one participants along the AD continuum performed an ecological orientation task in the spatial, temporal, and social domains while undergoing functional MRI. Disorientation in AD followed a three-way association between orientation domain, brain region, and disease stage. Specifically, patients with early amnestic mild cognitive impairment exhibited spatio-temporal disorientation and reduced brain activity in temporoparietal regions, while patients with AD dementia showed additional social disorientation and reduced brain activity in frontoparietal regions. Furthermore, patterns of hypoactivation overlapped different subnetworks of the default mode network, patterns of fluorodeoxyglucose hypometabolism, and cortical atrophy characteristic of AD. Our results suggest that AD may encompass a disorder of orientation, characterized by a biphasic process manifesting as early spatio-temporal and late social disorientation. As such, disorientation may offer a unique window into the clinicopathological progression of AD. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Despite extensive research into Alzheimer's disease (AD), its core cognitive deficit remains a matter of debate. In this study, we investigated whether orientation, defined as the ability to align internal representations with the external world in spatial, temporal, and social domains, constitutes a core cognitive deficit in AD. To do so, we used PET-fMRI imaging to collect behavioral, functional, and metabolic data from 51 participants along the AD continuum. Our findings suggest that AD may constitute a disorder of orientation, characterized by an early spatio-temporal disorientation and followed by late social disorientation, manifesting in task-evoked and neurodegenerative changes. We propose that a profile of disorientation across multiple domains offers a unique window into the progression of AD and as such could greatly benefit disease diagnosis, monitoring, and evaluation of treatment response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory Peters‐Founshtein
- The Computational Neuropsychiatry Lab, Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of MedicineHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
- Department of Nuclear MedicineSheba Medical CenterRamat‐GanIsrael
| | - Lidor Gazit
- The Computational Neuropsychiatry Lab, Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of MedicineHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
- Department of NeurologyHadassah Hebrew University Medical SchoolJerusalemIsrael
| | - Tahel Naveh
- The Computational Neuropsychiatry Lab, Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of MedicineHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
- Department of NeurologyHadassah Hebrew University Medical SchoolJerusalemIsrael
| | - Liran Domachevsky
- Department of Nuclear MedicineSheba Medical CenterRamat‐GanIsrael
- Department of Nuclear MedicineAssuta Medical CenterTel‐AvivIsrael
| | | | - Hanna Bernstine
- Department of Nuclear MedicineAssuta Medical CenterTel‐AvivIsrael
- Department of ImagingTel‐Aviv UniversityTel‐AvivIsrael
- Department of Nuclear MedicineRabin Medical CenterPetah TikvaIsrael
| | | | - David Groshar
- Department of Nuclear MedicineAssuta Medical CenterTel‐AvivIsrael
- Department of ImagingTel‐Aviv UniversityTel‐AvivIsrael
| | - Gad A. Marshall
- Department of Neurology, Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment, Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women's HospitalMassachusetts General HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Shahar Arzy
- The Computational Neuropsychiatry Lab, Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of MedicineHebrew University of JerusalemJerusalemIsrael
- Department of NeurologyHadassah Hebrew University Medical SchoolJerusalemIsrael
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32
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Kim J, Kim S, Um YH, Wang SM, Kim REY, Choe YS, Lee J, Kim D, Lim HK, Lee CU, Kang DW. Associations between Education Years and Resting-state Functional Connectivity Modulated by APOE ε4 Carrier Status in Cognitively Normal Older Adults. CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE : THE OFFICIAL SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN COLLEGE OF NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY 2024; 22:169-181. [PMID: 38247423 PMCID: PMC10811405 DOI: 10.9758/cpn.23.1113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/23/2024]
Abstract
Objective : Cognitive reserve has emerged as a concept to explain the variable expression of clinical symptoms in the pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The association between years of education, a proxy of cognitive reserve, and resting-state functional connectivity (rFC), a representative intermediate phenotype, has not been explored in the preclinical phase, considering risk factors for AD. We aimed to evaluate whether the relationship between years of education and rFC in cognitively preserved older adults differs depending on amyloid-beta deposition and APOE ε4 carrier status as effect modifiers. Methods : A total of 121 participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging, [18F] flutemetamol positron emission tomography-computed tomography, APOE genotyping, and a neuropsychological battery. Potential interactions between years of education and AD risk factors for rFC of AD-vulnerable neural networks were assessed with whole-brain voxel-wise analysis. Results : We found a significant education years-by-APOE ε4 carrier status interaction for the rFC from the seed region of the central executive (CEN) and dorsal attention networks. Moreover, there was a significant interaction of rFC between right superior occipital gyrus and the CEN seed region by APOE ε4 carrier status for memory performances and overall cognitive function. Conclusion : In preclinical APOE ε4 carriers, higher years of education were associated with higher rFC of the AD vulnerable network, but this contributed to lower cognitive function. These results contribute to a deeper understanding of the impact of cognitive reserve on sensitive functional intermediate phenotypic markers in the preclinical phase of AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiwon Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sunghwan Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Yoo Hyun Um
- Department of Psychiatry, St. Vincent’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Suwon, Korea
| | - Sheng-Min Wang
- Department of Psychiatry, Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | | | | | - Jiyeon Lee
- Research Institute, NEUROPHET Inc., Seoul, Korea
| | | | - Hyun Kook Lim
- Department of Psychiatry, Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
- Research Institute, NEUROPHET Inc., Seoul, Korea
| | - Chang Uk Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
| | - Dong Woo Kang
- Department of Psychiatry, Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
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33
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Young AL, Oxtoby NP, Garbarino S, Fox NC, Barkhof F, Schott JM, Alexander DC. Data-driven modelling of neurodegenerative disease progression: thinking outside the black box. Nat Rev Neurosci 2024; 25:111-130. [PMID: 38191721 DOI: 10.1038/s41583-023-00779-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024]
Abstract
Data-driven disease progression models are an emerging set of computational tools that reconstruct disease timelines for long-term chronic diseases, providing unique insights into disease processes and their underlying mechanisms. Such methods combine a priori human knowledge and assumptions with large-scale data processing and parameter estimation to infer long-term disease trajectories from short-term data. In contrast to 'black box' machine learning tools, data-driven disease progression models typically require fewer data and are inherently interpretable, thereby aiding disease understanding in addition to enabling classification, prediction and stratification. In this Review, we place the current landscape of data-driven disease progression models in a general framework and discuss their enhanced utility for constructing a disease timeline compared with wider machine learning tools that construct static disease profiles. We review the insights they have enabled across multiple neurodegenerative diseases, notably Alzheimer disease, for applications such as determining temporal trajectories of disease biomarkers, testing hypotheses about disease mechanisms and uncovering disease subtypes. We outline key areas for technological development and translation to a broader range of neuroscience and non-neuroscience applications. Finally, we discuss potential pathways and barriers to integrating disease progression models into clinical practice and trial settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra L Young
- UCL Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK.
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
| | - Neil P Oxtoby
- UCL Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Sara Garbarino
- Life Science Computational Laboratory, IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genova, Italy
| | - Nick C Fox
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Frederik Barkhof
- UCL Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK
- Department of Radiology & Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jonathan M Schott
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Daniel C Alexander
- UCL Centre for Medical Image Computing, Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK
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34
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Chumin EJ, Cutts SA, Risacher SL, Apostolova LG, Farlow MR, McDonald BC, Wu YC, Betzel R, Saykin AJ, Sporns O. Edge time series components of functional connectivity and cognitive function in Alzheimer's disease. Brain Imaging Behav 2024; 18:243-255. [PMID: 38008852 PMCID: PMC10844434 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-023-00822-1] [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] [Accepted: 11/04/2023] [Indexed: 11/28/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the interrelationships of brain function as measured by resting-state magnetic resonance imaging and neuropsychological/behavioral measures in Alzheimer's disease is key for advancement of neuroimaging analysis methods in clinical research. The edge time-series framework recently developed in the field of network neuroscience, in combination with other network science methods, allows for investigations of brain-behavior relationships that are not possible with conventional functional connectivity methods. Data from the Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center sample (53 cognitively normal control, 47 subjective cognitive decline, 32 mild cognitive impairment, and 20 Alzheimer's disease participants) were used to investigate relationships between functional connectivity components, each derived from a subset of time points based on co-fluctuation of regional signals, and measures of domain-specific neuropsychological functions. Multiple relationships were identified with the component approach that were not found with conventional functional connectivity. These involved attentional, limbic, frontoparietal, and default mode systems and their interactions, which were shown to couple with cognitive, executive, language, and attention neuropsychological domains. Additionally, overlapping results were obtained with two different statistical strategies (network contingency correlation analysis and network-based statistics correlation). Results demonstrate that connectivity components derived from edge time-series based on co-fluctuation reveal disease-relevant relationships not observed with conventional static functional connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgeny J Chumin
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Psychology Building 308, 1101 E 10th St, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA.
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA.
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA.
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA.
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA.
| | - Sarah A Cutts
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Psychology Building 308, 1101 E 10th St, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Shannon L Risacher
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Liana G Apostolova
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Martin R Farlow
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Brenna C McDonald
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Yu-Chien Wu
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Richard Betzel
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Psychology Building 308, 1101 E 10th St, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Andrew J Saykin
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Olaf Sporns
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Psychology Building 308, 1101 E 10th St, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, USA
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, USA
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35
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Sintini I, Corriveau-Lecavalier N, Jones DT, Machulda MM, Gunter JL, Schwarz CG, Botha H, Carlos AF, Kamykowski MG, Singh NA, Petersen RC, Jack CR, Lowe VJ, Graff-Radford J, Josephs KA, Whitwell JL. Longitudinal default mode sub-networks in the language and visual variants of Alzheimer's disease. Brain Commun 2024; 6:fcae005. [PMID: 38444909 PMCID: PMC10914456 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcae005] [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: 06/26/2023] [Revised: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Disruption of the default mode network is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, which has not been extensively examined in atypical phenotypes. We investigated cross-sectional and 1-year longitudinal changes in default mode network sub-systems in the visual and language variants of Alzheimer's disease, in relation to age and tau. Sixty-one amyloid-positive Alzheimer's disease participants diagnosed with posterior cortical atrophy (n = 33) or logopenic progressive aphasia (n = 28) underwent structural MRI, resting-state functional MRI and [18F]flortaucipir PET. One-hundred and twenty-two amyloid-negative cognitively unimpaired individuals and 60 amyloid-positive individuals diagnosed with amnestic Alzheimer's disease were included as controls and as a comparison group, respectively, and had structural and resting-state functional MRI. Forty-one atypical Alzheimer's disease participants, 26 amnestic Alzheimer's disease participants and 40 cognitively unimpaired individuals had one follow-up functional MRI ∼1-2 years after the baseline scan. Default mode network connectivity was calculated using the dual regression method for posterior, ventral, anterior ventral and anterior dorsal sub-systems derived from independent component analysis. A global measure of default mode network connectivity, the network failure quotient, was also calculated. Linear mixed-effects models and voxel-based analyses were computed for each connectivity measure. Both atypical and amnestic Alzheimer's disease participants had lower cross-sectional posterior and ventral and higher anterior dorsal connectivity and network failure quotient relative to cognitively unimpaired individuals. Age had opposite effects on connectivity in Alzheimer's disease participants and cognitively unimpaired individuals. While connectivity declined with age in cognitively unimpaired individuals, younger Alzheimer's disease participants had lower connectivity than the older ones, particularly in the ventral default mode network. Greater baseline tau-PET uptake was associated with lower ventral and anterior ventral default mode network connectivity in atypical Alzheimer's disease. Connectivity in the ventral default mode network declined over time in atypical Alzheimer's disease, particularly in older participants, with lower tau burden. Voxel-based analyses validated the findings of higher anterior dorsal default mode network connectivity, lower posterior and ventral default mode network connectivity and decline in ventral default mode network connectivity over time in atypical Alzheimer's disease. Visuospatial symptoms were associated with default mode network connectivity disruption. In summary, default mode connectivity disruption was similar between atypical and amnestic Alzheimer's disease variants, and discriminated Alzheimer's disease from cognitively unimpaired individuals, with decreased posterior and increased anterior connectivity and with disruption more pronounced in younger participants. The ventral default mode network declined over time in atypical Alzheimer's disease, suggesting a shift in default mode network connectivity likely related to tau pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Sintini
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - David T Jones
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Mary M Machulda
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | | | - Hugo Botha
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Arenn F Carlos
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | | | | | - Clifford R Jack
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Val J Lowe
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | | | - Keith A Josephs
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
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36
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Franzmeier N, Dehsarvi A, Steward A, Biel D, Dewenter A, Roemer SN, Wagner F, Groß M, Brendel M, Moscoso A, Arunachalam P, Blennow K, Zetterberg H, Ewers M, Schöll M. Elevated CSF GAP-43 is associated with accelerated tau accumulation and spread in Alzheimer's disease. Nat Commun 2024; 15:202. [PMID: 38172114 PMCID: PMC10764818 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44374-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
In Alzheimer's disease, amyloid-beta (Aβ) triggers the trans-synaptic spread of tau pathology, and aberrant synaptic activity has been shown to promote tau spreading. Aβ induces aberrant synaptic activity, manifesting in increases in the presynaptic growth-associated protein 43 (GAP-43), which is closely involved in synaptic activity and plasticity. We therefore tested whether Aβ-related GAP-43 increases, as a marker of synaptic changes, drive tau spreading in 93 patients across the aging and Alzheimer's spectrum with available CSF GAP-43, amyloid-PET and longitudinal tau-PET assessments. We found that (1) higher GAP-43 was associated with faster Aβ-related tau accumulation, specifically in brain regions connected closest to subject-specific tau epicenters and (2) that higher GAP-43 strengthened the association between Aβ and connectivity-associated tau spread. This suggests that GAP-43-related synaptic changes are linked to faster Aβ-related tau spread across connected regions and that synapses could be key targets for preventing tau spreading in Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolai Franzmeier
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, Germany.
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden.
| | - Amir Dehsarvi
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Steward
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Davina Biel
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Dewenter
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Niclas Roemer
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Fabian Wagner
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Mattes Groß
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Matthias Brendel
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, Germany
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Alexis Moscoso
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Prithvi Arunachalam
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Kaj Blennow
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
- Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden
| | - Henrik Zetterberg
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
- Clinical Neurochemistry Laboratory, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal, Sweden
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, UK
- UK Dementia Research Institute at UCL, London, UK
- Hong Kong Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China
- Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Michael Ewers
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Schöll
- University of Gothenburg, The Sahlgrenska Academy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
- Wallenberg Centre for Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
- Dementia Research Centre, Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
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Ersözlü E, Rauchmann BS. Analysis of Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Alzheimer's Disease. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2785:89-104. [PMID: 38427190 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3774-6_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been characterized by widespread network disconnection among brain regions, widely overlapping with the hallmarks of the disease. Functional connectivity has been studied with an upward trend in the last two decades, predominantly in AD among other neuropsychiatric disorders, and presents a potential biomarker with various features that might provide unique contributions to foster our understanding of neural mechanisms of AD. The resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) is usually used to measure the blood-oxygen-level-dependent signals that reflect the brain's functional connectivity. Nevertheless, the rs-fMRI is still underutilized, which might be due to the fairly complex acquisition and analytic methodology. In this chapter, we presented the common methods that have been applied in rs-fMRI literature, focusing on the studies on individuals in the continuum of AD. The key methodological aspects will be addressed that comprise acquiring, processing, and interpreting rs-fMRI data. More, we discussed the current and potential implications of rs-fMRI in AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ersin Ersözlü
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry and Developmental Disorders, kbo-Isar-Amper-Klinikum Munich East, Academic Teaching Hospital of LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Boris-Stephan Rauchmann
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Neuroradiology, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) Munich, Munich, Germany
- Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
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Geng Z, Wu Y, Liu J, Zhan Y, Yan Y, Yang C, Pang X, Ji Y, Gao M, Zhou S, Wei L, Hu P, Wu X, Tian Y, Wang K. A Study on the Effect of Executive Control Network Functional Connection on the Therapeutic Efficacy of Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Alzheimer's Disease. J Alzheimers Dis 2024; 99:1349-1359. [PMID: 38820018 DOI: 10.3233/jad-231449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2024]
Abstract
Background Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by brain network dysfunction. Few studies have investigated whether the functional connections between executive control networks (ECN) and other brain regions can predict the therapeutic effect of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Objective The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the functional connectivity (FC) within ECN networks and the efficacy of rTMS. Methods We recruited AD patients for rTMS treatment. We established an ECN using baseline period fMRI data and conducted an analysis of the ECN's FC throughout the brain. Concurrently, the support vector regression (SVR) method was employed to project post-rTMS cognitive scores, utilizing the connectional attributes of the ECN as predictive markers. Results The average age of the patients was 66.86±8.44 years, with 8 males and 13 females. Significant improvement on most cognitive measures. We use ECN connectivity and brain region functions in baseline patients as features for SVR model training and fitting. The SVR model could demonstrate significant predictability for changes in Montreal Cognitive Assessment scores among AD patients after rTMS treatment. The brain regions that contributed most to the prediction of the model (the top 10% of weights) were located in the medial temporal lobe, middle temporal gyrus, frontal lobe, parietal lobe and occipital lobe. Conclusions The stronger the antagonism between ECN and parieto-occipital lobe function, the better the prediction of cognitive improvement; the stronger the synergy between ECN and fronto-temporal lobe function, the better the prediction of cognitive improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhi Geng
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Yue Wu
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
- Department of Sleep Psychology, The Second Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Jiaqiu Liu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Yuqian Zhan
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Yibing Yan
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Chaoyi Yang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Xuerui Pang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Yi Ji
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Manman Gao
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Shanshan Zhou
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Ling Wei
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Panpan Hu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
- Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, Hefei, China
- Anhui Provincial Institute of Translational Medicine, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Xingqi Wu
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
| | - Yanghua Tian
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
- Department of Sleep Psychology, The Second Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Kai Wang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Cognition and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Hefei, China
- Collaborative Innovation Centre of Neuropsychiatric Disorder and Mental Health, Hefei, China
- Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, Hefei, China
- Anhui Provincial Institute of Translational Medicine, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
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L'Esperance OJ, McGhee J, Davidson G, Niraula S, Smith AS, Sosunov AA, Yan SS, Subramanian J. Functional Connectivity Favors Aberrant Visual Network c-Fos Expression Accompanied by Cortical Synapse Loss in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease. J Alzheimers Dis 2024; 101:111-131. [PMID: 39121131 DOI: 10.3233/jad-240776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/11/2024]
Abstract
Background While Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been extensively studied with a focus on cognitive networks, visual network dysfunction has received less attention despite compelling evidence of its significance in AD patients and mouse models. We recently reported c-Fos and synaptic dysregulation in the primary visual cortex of a pre-amyloid plaque AD-model. Objective We test whether c-Fos expression and presynaptic density/dynamics differ in cortical and subcortical visual areas in an AD-model. We also examine whether aberrant c-Fos expression is inherited through functional connectivity and shaped by light experience. Methods c-Fos+ cell density, functional connectivity, and their experience-dependent modulation were assessed for visual and whole-brain networks in both sexes of 4-6-month-old J20 (AD-model) and wildtype (WT) mice. Cortical and subcortical differences in presynaptic vulnerability in the AD-model were compared using ex vivo and in vivo imaging. Results Visual cortical, but not subcortical, networks show aberrant c-Fos expression and impaired experience-dependent modulation. The average functional connectivity of a brain region in WT mice significantly predicts aberrant c-Fos expression, which correlates with impaired experience-dependent modulation in the AD-model. We observed a subtle yet selective weakening of excitatory visual cortical synapses. The size distribution of cortical boutons in the AD-model is downscaled relative to those in WT mice, suggesting a synaptic scaling-like adaptation of bouton size. Conclusions Visual network structural and functional disruptions are biased toward cortical regions in pre-plaque J20 mice, and the cellular and synaptic dysregulation in the AD-model represents a maladaptive modification of the baseline physiology seen in WT conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver J L'Esperance
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Joshua McGhee
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Garett Davidson
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Suraj Niraula
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Adam S Smith
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
| | - Alexandre A Sosunov
- Department of Neurosurgery, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Shirley Shidu Yan
- Department of Neurosurgery, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jaichandar Subramanian
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
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40
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Esquivel AR, Hill SE, Blair LJ. DnaJs are enriched in tau regulators. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 253:127486. [PMID: 37852393 PMCID: PMC10842427 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.127486] [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: 06/01/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
The aberrant accumulation of tau protein is implicated as a pathogenic factor in many neurodegenerative diseases. Tau seeding may underlie its predictable spread in these diseases. Molecular chaperones can modulate tau pathology, but their effects have mainly been studied in isolation. This study employed a semi-high throughput assay to identify molecular chaperones influencing tau seeding using Tau RD P301S FRET Biosensor cells, which express a portion of tau containing the frontotemporal dementia-related P301S tau mutation fused to a FRET biosensor. Approximately fifty chaperones from five major families were screened using live cell imaging to monitor FRET-positive tau seeding. Among the tested chaperones, five exhibited significant effects on tau in the primary screen. Notably, three of these were from the DnaJ family. In subsequent studies, overexpression of DnaJA2, DnaJB1, and DnaJB6b resulted in significant reductions in tau levels. Knockdown experiments by shRNA revealed an inverse correlation between DnaJB1 and DnaJB6b with tau levels. DnaJB6b overexpression, specifically, reduced total tau levels in a cellular model with a pre-existing pool of tau, partially through enhanced proteasomal degradation. Further, DnaJB6b interacted with tau complexes. These findings highlight the potent chaperone activity within the DnaJ family, particularly DnaJB6b, towards tau.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abigail R Esquivel
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA; USF Health Byrd Alzheimer's Institute, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33613, USA
| | - Shannon E Hill
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA; USF Health Byrd Alzheimer's Institute, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33613, USA
| | - Laura J Blair
- Department of Molecular Medicine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33612, USA; USF Health Byrd Alzheimer's Institute, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33613, USA; Research Service, James A Haley Veterans Hospital, 13000 Bruce B Downs Blvd, Tampa, FL 33612, USA.
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Rubido N, Riedel G, Vuksanović V. Genetic basis of anatomical asymmetry and aberrant dynamic functional networks in Alzheimer's disease. Brain Commun 2023; 6:fcad320. [PMID: 38173803 PMCID: PMC10763534 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcad320] [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: 05/09/2023] [Revised: 10/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Genetic associations with macroscopic brain networks can provide insights into healthy and aberrant cortical connectivity in disease. However, associations specific to dynamic functional connectivity in Alzheimer's disease are still largely unexplored. Understanding the association between gene expression in the brain and functional networks may provide useful information about the molecular processes underlying variations in impaired brain function. Given the potential of dynamic functional connectivity to uncover brain states associated with Alzheimer's disease, it is interesting to ask: How does gene expression associated with Alzheimer's disease map onto the dynamic functional brain connectivity? If genetic variants associated with neurodegenerative processes involved in Alzheimer's disease are to be correlated with brain function, it is essential to generate such a map. Here, we investigate how the relation between gene expression in the brain and dynamic functional connectivity arises from nodal interactions, quantified by their role in network centrality (i.e. the drivers of the metastability), and the principal component of genetic co-expression across the brain. Our analyses include genetic variations associated with Alzheimer's disease and also genetic variants expressed within the cholinergic brain pathways. Our findings show that contrasts in metastability of functional networks between Alzheimer's and healthy individuals can in part be explained by the two combinations of genetic co-variations in the brain with the confidence interval between 72% and 92%. The highly central nodes, driving the brain aberrant metastable dynamics in Alzheimer's disease, highly correlate with the magnitude of variations from two combinations of genes expressed in the brain. These nodes include mainly the white matter, parietal and occipital brain regions, each of which (or their combinations) are involved in impaired cognitive function in Alzheimer's disease. In addition, our results provide evidence of the role of genetic associations across brain regions in asymmetric changes in ageing. We validated our findings on the same cohort using alternative brain parcellation methods. This work demonstrates how genetic variations underpin aberrant dynamic functional connectivity in Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolás Rubido
- Institute of Complex Systems and Mathematical Biology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3UE, UK
| | - Gernot Riedel
- Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK
| | - Vesna Vuksanović
- Health Data Science, Swansea University Medical School, Swansea University, Swansea SA2 8PP, UK
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Filippi M, Cividini C, Basaia S, Spinelli EG, Castelnovo V, Leocadi M, Canu E, Agosta F. Age-related vulnerability of the human brain connectome. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:5350-5358. [PMID: 37414925 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-023-02157-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2022] [Revised: 06/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023]
Abstract
Multifactorial models integrating brain variables at multiple scales are warranted to investigate aging and its relationship with neurodegeneration. Our aim was to evaluate how aging affects functional connectivity of pivotal regions of the human brain connectome (i.e., hubs), which represent potential vulnerability 'stations' to aging, and whether such effects influence the functional and structural changes of the whole brain. We combined the information of the functional connectome vulnerability, studied through an innovative graph-analysis approach (stepwise functional connectivity), with brain cortical thinning in aging. Using data from 128 cognitively normal participants (aged 20-85 years), we firstly investigated the topological functional network organization in the optimal healthy condition (i.e., young adults) and observed that fronto-temporo-parietal hubs showed a highly direct functional connectivity with themselves and among each other, while occipital hubs showed a direct functional connectivity within occipital regions and sensorimotor areas. Subsequently, we modeled cortical thickness changes over lifespan, revealing that fronto-temporo-parietal hubs were among the brain regions that changed the most, whereas occipital hubs showed a quite spared cortical thickness across ages. Finally, we found that cortical regions highly functionally linked to the fronto-temporo-parietal hubs in healthy adults were characterized by the greatest cortical thinning along the lifespan, demonstrating that the topology and geometry of hub functional connectome govern the region-specific structural alterations of the brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Massimo Filippi
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
- Neurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
- Neurophysiology Service, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
- Neurorehabilitation Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
| | - Camilla Cividini
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Silvia Basaia
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Edoardo G Spinelli
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Neurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Veronica Castelnovo
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Michela Leocadi
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Elisa Canu
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Federica Agosta
- Neuroimaging Research Unit, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Neurology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
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Steward A, Biel D, Dewenter A, Roemer S, Wagner F, Dehsarvi A, Rathore S, Otero Svaldi D, Higgins I, Brendel M, Dichgans M, Shcherbinin S, Ewers M, Franzmeier N. ApoE4 and Connectivity-Mediated Spreading of Tau Pathology at Lower Amyloid Levels. JAMA Neurol 2023; 80:1295-1306. [PMID: 37930695 PMCID: PMC10628846 DOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2023.4038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
Importance For the Alzheimer disease (AD) therapies to effectively attenuate clinical progression, it may be critical to intervene before the onset of amyloid-associated tau spreading, which drives neurodegeneration and cognitive decline. Time points at which amyloid-associated tau spreading accelerates may depend on individual risk factors, such as apolipoprotein E ε4 (ApoE4) carriership, which is linked to faster disease progression; however, the association of ApoE4 with amyloid-related tau spreading is unclear. Objective To assess if ApoE4 carriers show accelerated amyloid-related tau spreading and propose amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) thresholds at which tau spreading accelerates in ApoE4 carriers vs noncarriers. Design, Setting, and Participants This cohort study including combined ApoE genotyping, amyloid PET, and longitudinal tau PET from 2 independent samples: the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI; n = 237; collected from April 2015 to August 2022) and Avid-A05 (n = 130; collected from December 2013 to July 2017) with a mean (SD) tau PET follow-up time of 1.9 (0.96) years in ADNI and 1.4 (0.23) years in Avid-A05. ADNI is an observational multicenter Alzheimer disease neuroimaging initiative and Avid-A05 an observational clinical trial. Participants classified as cognitively normal (152 in ADNI and 77 in Avid-A05) or mildly cognitively impaired (107 in ADNI and 53 in Avid-A05) were selected based on ApoE genotyping, amyloid-PET, and longitudinal tau PET data availability. Participants with ApoE ε2/ε4 genotype or classified as having dementia were excluded. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging connectivity templates were based on 42 healthy participants in ADNI. Main Outcomes and Measures Mediation of amyloid PET on the association between ApoE4 status and subsequent tau PET increase through Braak stage regions and interaction between ApoE4 status and amyloid PET with annual tau PET increase through Braak stage regions and connectivity-based spreading stages (tau epicenter connectivity ranked regions). Results The mean (SD) age was 73.9 (7.35) years among the 237 ADNI participants and 70.2 (9.7) years among the 130 Avid-A05 participants. A total of 107 individuals in ADNI (45.1%) and 45 in Avid-A05 (34.6%) were ApoE4 carriers. Across both samples, we found that higher amyloid PET-mediated ApoE4-related tau PET increased globally (ADNI b, 0.15; 95% CI, 0.05-0.28; P = .001 and Avid-A05 b, 0.33; 95% CI, 0.14-0.54; P < .001) and in earlier Braak regions. Further, we found a significant association between ApoE4 status by amyloid PET interaction and annual tau PET increases consistently through early Braak- and connectivity-based stages where amyloid-related tau accumulation was accelerated in ApoE4carriers vs noncarriers at lower centiloid thresholds, corrected for age and sex. Conclusions and Relevance The findings in this study indicate that amyloid-related tau accumulation was accelerated in ApoE4 carriers at lower amyloid levels, suggesting that ApoE4 may facilitate earlier amyloid-driven tau spreading across connected brain regions. Possible therapeutic implications might be further investigated to determine when best to prevent tau spreading and thus cognitive decline depending on ApoE4 status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Steward
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Davina Biel
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Anna Dewenter
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Sebastian Roemer
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Fabian Wagner
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Amir Dehsarvi
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Matthias Brendel
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology, Munich, Germany
| | - Martin Dichgans
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology, Munich, Germany
| | | | - Michael Ewers
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, Munich, Germany
| | - Nicolai Franzmeier
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology, Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
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Chumin EJ, Cutts SA, Risacher SL, Apostolova LG, Farlow MR, McDonald BC, Wu YC, Betzel R, Saykin AJ, Sporns O. Edge Time Series Components of Functional Connectivity and Cognitive Function in Alzheimer's Disease. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2023:2023.05.13.23289936. [PMID: 38014005 PMCID: PMC10680898 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.13.23289936] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the interrelationships of brain function as measured by resting-state magnetic resonance imaging and neuropsychological/behavioral measures in Alzheimer's disease is key for advancement of neuroimaging analysis methods in clinical research. The edge time-series framework recently developed in the field of network neuroscience, in combination with other network science methods, allows for investigations of brain-behavior relationships that are not possible with conventional functional connectivity methods. Data from the Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center sample (53 cognitively normal control, 47 subjective cognitive decline, 32 mild cognitive impairment, and 20 Alzheimer's disease participants) were used to investigate relationships between functional connectivity components, each derived from a subset of time points based on co-fluctuation of regional signals, and measures of domain-specific neuropsychological functions. Multiple relationships were identified with the component approach that were not found with conventional functional connectivity. These involved attentional, limbic, frontoparietal, and default mode systems and their interactions, which were shown to couple with cognitive, executive, language, and attention neuropsychological domains. Additionally, overlapping results were obtained with two different statistical strategies (network contingency correlation analysis and network-based statistics correlation). Results demonstrate that connectivity components derived from edge time-series based on co-fluctuation reveal disease-relevant relationships not observed with conventional static functional connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgeny J. Chumin
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Bloomington, IN, United States
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Sarah A. Cutts
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Bloomington, IN, United States
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
| | - Shannon L. Risacher
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Liana G. Apostolova
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Martin R. Farlow
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Brenna C. McDonald
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Yu-Chien Wu
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Richard Betzel
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Bloomington, IN, United States
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
| | - Andrew J. Saykin
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Department of Neurology, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Olaf Sporns
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University (IU), Bloomington, IN, United States
- Indiana University Network Sciences Institute, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine (IUSM), Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
- Program in Neuroscience, IU, Bloomington, IN, United States
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, IUSM, Indianapolis, IN, United States
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45
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Tu JC, Millar PR, Strain JF, Eck A, Adeyemo B, Daniels A, Karch C, Huey ED, McDade E, Day GS, Yakushev I, Hassenstab J, Morris J, Llibre-Guerra JJ, Ibanez L, Jucker M, Mendez PC, Bateman RJ, Perrin RJ, Benzinger T, Jack CR, Betzel R, Ances BM, Eggebrecht AT, Gordon BA, Wheelock MD. Increasing hub disruption parallels dementia severity in autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.29.564633. [PMID: 37961586 PMCID: PMC10634945 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.29.564633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Hub regions in the brain, recognized for their roles in ensuring efficient information transfer, are vulnerable to pathological alterations in neurodegenerative conditions, including Alzheimer Disease (AD). Given their essential role in neural communication, disruptions to these hubs have profound implications for overall brain network integrity and functionality. Hub disruption, or targeted impairment of functional connectivity at the hubs, is recognized in AD patients. Computational models paired with evidence from animal experiments hint at a mechanistic explanation, suggesting that these hubs may be preferentially targeted in neurodegeneration, due to their high neuronal activity levels-a phenomenon termed "activity-dependent degeneration". Yet, two critical issues were unresolved. First, past research hasn't definitively shown whether hub regions face a higher likelihood of impairment (targeted attack) compared to other regions or if impairment likelihood is uniformly distributed (random attack). Second, human studies offering support for activity-dependent explanations remain scarce. We applied a refined hub disruption index to determine the presence of targeted attacks in AD. Furthermore, we explored potential evidence for activity-dependent degeneration by evaluating if hub vulnerability is better explained by global connectivity or connectivity variations across functional systems, as well as comparing its timing relative to amyloid beta deposition in the brain. Our unique cohort of participants with autosomal dominant Alzheimer Disease (ADAD) allowed us to probe into the preclinical stages of AD to determine the hub disruption timeline in relation to expected symptom emergence. Our findings reveal a hub disruption pattern in ADAD aligned with targeted attacks, detectable even in pre-clinical stages. Notably, the disruption's severity amplified alongside symptomatic progression. Moreover, since excessive local neuronal activity has been shown to increase amyloid deposition and high connectivity regions show high level of neuronal activity, our observation that hub disruption was primarily tied to regional differences in global connectivity and sequentially followed changes observed in Aβ PET cortical markers is consistent with the activity-dependent degeneration model. Intriguingly, these disruptions were discernible 8 years before the expected age of symptom onset. Taken together, our findings not only align with the targeted attack on hubs model but also suggest that activity-dependent degeneration might be the cause of hub vulnerability. This deepened understanding could be instrumental in refining diagnostic techniques and developing targeted therapeutic strategies for AD in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxin Cindy Tu
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Peter R Millar
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Jeremy F Strain
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Andrew Eck
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Babatunde Adeyemo
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Alisha Daniels
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Celeste Karch
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Edward D Huey
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912
| | - Eric McDade
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Gregory S Day
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Jacksonville, FL, USA, 32224
| | - Igor Yakushev
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany, 81675
| | - Jason Hassenstab
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - John Morris
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Jorge J Llibre-Guerra
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Laura Ibanez
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
- NeuroGenomics and Informatics Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Mathias Jucker
- Department of Cellular Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany, 72076
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Tübingen, Germany, 72076
| | | | - Randell J Bateman
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Richard J Perrin
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Tammie Benzinger
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Clifford R Jack
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA 55905
| | - Richard Betzel
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN USA, 47405
| | - Beau M Ances
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Adam T Eggebrecht
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Brian A Gordon
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
| | - Muriah D Wheelock
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA, 63108
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46
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Jin H, Ranasinghe KG, Prabhu P, Dale C, Gao Y, Kudo K, Vossel K, Raj A, Nagarajan SS, Jiang F. Dynamic functional connectivity MEG features of Alzheimer's disease. Neuroimage 2023; 281:120358. [PMID: 37699440 PMCID: PMC10865998 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Dynamic resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) characterizes time-varying fluctuations of functional brain network activity. While many studies have investigated static functional connectivity, it has been unclear whether features of dynamic functional connectivity are associated with neurodegenerative diseases. Popular sliding-window and clustering methods for extracting dynamic RSFC have various limitations that prevent extracting reliable features to address this question. Here, we use a novel and robust time-varying dynamic network (TVDN) approach to extract the dynamic RSFC features from high resolution magnetoencephalography (MEG) data of participants with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and matched controls. The TVDN algorithm automatically and adaptively learns the low-dimensional spatiotemporal manifold of dynamic RSFC and detects dynamic state transitions in data. We show that amongst all the functional features we investigated, the dynamic manifold features are the most predictive of AD. These include: the temporal complexity of the brain network, given by the number of state transitions and their dwell times, and the spatial complexity of the brain network, given by the number of eigenmodes. These dynamic features have higher sensitivity and specificity in distinguishing AD from healthy subjects than the existing benchmarks do. Intriguingly, we found that AD patients generally have higher spatial complexity but lower temporal complexity compared with healthy controls. We also show that graph theoretic metrics of dynamic component of TVDN are significantly different in AD versus controls, while static graph metrics are not statistically different. These results indicate that dynamic RSFC features are impacted in neurodegenerative disease like Alzheimer's disease, and may be crucial to understanding the pathophysiological trajectory of these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huaqing Jin
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Kamalini G Ranasinghe
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Memory and Aging Center, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Pooja Prabhu
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Corby Dale
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Yijing Gao
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Kiwamu Kudo
- Medical Imaging Business Center, Ricoh Company, Ltd., Kanazawa, 920-0177, Japan
| | - Keith Vossel
- Department of Neurology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ashish Raj
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Srikantan S Nagarajan
- Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Fei Jiang
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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47
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Nabizadeh F. sTREM2 is associated with attenuated tau aggregate accumulation in the presence of amyloid-β pathology. Brain Commun 2023; 5:fcad286. [PMID: 37942087 PMCID: PMC10629471 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcad286] [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: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cell 2 (TREM2) plays a crucial role in the transition of microglia from a state of homeostasis to a state associated with the disease. Mutations in TREM2 are strongly linked with a higher risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease. There have been contradictory findings regarding the potential detrimental or protective effects of microglial activation and TREM2-related microglial responses in Alzheimer's disease. Although previous studies reported increased CSF soluble TREM2 (sTREM2) in different clinical stages of Alzheimer's disease, the exact association between Alzheimer's disease hallmarks such as amyloid-beta and tau pathology remains unclear. In the present study, I aimed to investigate the association between TREM2-related microglial responses and tau accumulation in the presence and absence of amyloid-beta pathology in order to give a better view of the role of microglial activation in Alzheimer's disease development. Imaging data of 178 non-demented participants including 107 amyloid-beta-negative participants, 71 amyloid-beta-positive were recruited from Alzheimer's disease Neuroimaging Initiative. The CSF sTREM2 was used as an in vivo indicator of microglial responses associated with TREM2. Furthermore, I used longitudinal tau-PET and resting-state functional MRI connectomes in order to investigate the association of TREM2-related microglial activation and tau spreading through functional connections. A higher level of sTREM2 was associated with slower tau aggregate accumulation in non-demented amyloid-beta-positive. Furthermore, measuring the tau spreading through inter-connected regions using functional MRI connectomes confirms that the TREM2-related microglial activity might be a protective factor against tau pathology in brain tissue. These findings demonstrate that in individuals with initial amyloid-beta abnormalities, TREM2-related microglial activation is linked to reduced regional accumulation of tau aggregates and also, spreading across inter-connected brain regions, as evaluated through functional MRI connectomes during the early stages of Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fardin Nabizadeh
- School of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, 1449614535, Iran
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48
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Bitra VR, Challa SR, Adiukwu PC, Rapaka D. Tau trajectory in Alzheimer's disease: Evidence from the connectome-based computational models. Brain Res Bull 2023; 203:110777. [PMID: 37813312 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2023.110777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 07/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with an impairment of cognition and memory. Current research on connectomics have now related changes in the network organization in AD to the patterns of accumulation and spread of amyloid and tau, providing insights into the neurobiological mechanisms of the disease. In addition, network analysis and modeling focus on particular use of graphs to provide intuition into key organizational principles of brain structure, that stipulate how neural activity propagates along structural connections. The utility of connectome-based computational models aids in early predicting, tracking the progression of biomarker-directed AD neuropathology. In this article, we present a short review of tau trajectory, the connectome changes in tau pathology, and the dependent recent connectome-based computational modelling approaches for tau spreading, reproducing pragmatic findings, and developing significant novel tau targeted therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veera Raghavulu Bitra
- School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Botswana, P/Bag-0022, Gaborone, Botswana.
| | - Siva Reddy Challa
- Department of Cancer Biology and Pharmacology, University of Illinois College of Medicine, Peoria, IL 61614, USA; KVSR Siddartha College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India
| | - Paul C Adiukwu
- School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Botswana, P/Bag-0022, Gaborone, Botswana
| | - Deepthi Rapaka
- Pharmacology Division, D.D.T. College of Medicine, Gaborone, Botswana.
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49
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Sintini I, Graff-Radford J, Schwarz CG, Machulda MM, Singh NA, Carlos AF, Senjem ML, Jack CR, Lowe VJ, Josephs KA, Whitwell JL. Longitudinal rates of atrophy and tau accumulation differ between the visual and language variants of atypical Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimers Dement 2023; 19:4396-4406. [PMID: 37485642 PMCID: PMC10592409 DOI: 10.1002/alz.13396] [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: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Atypical variants of Alzheimer's disease (AD) include the visual variant, known as posterior cortical atrophy (PCA), and the language variant, known as logopenic progressive aphasia (LPA). Clinically, rates of disease progression differ between them. METHODS We evaluated 34 PCA and 29 LPA participants. Structural magnetic resonance imaging and 18 F-flortaucipir positron emission tomography were performed at baseline and at 1-year follow-up. Rates of change in tau uptake and grey matter volumes were compared between PCA and LPA with linear mixed-effects models and voxel-based analyses. RESULTS PCA had faster rates of occipital atrophy. LPA had faster rates of left temporal atrophy and faster rates of tau accumulation in the parietal, right temporal, and occipital lobes. Age was negatively associated with rates of atrophy and tau accumulation. DISCUSSION Longitudinal patterns of neuroimaging abnormalities differed between PCA and LPA, although with divergent results for tau accumulation and atrophy. HIGHLIGHTS The language variant of Alzheimer's disease accumulates tau faster than the visual variant. Each variant shows faster rates of atrophy than the other in its signature regions. Age negatively influences rates of atrophy and tau accumulation in both variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Sintini
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA, 55905
| | | | | | - Mary M. Machulda
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester MN, USA, 55905
| | | | - Arenn F. Carlos
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA, 55905
| | - Matthew L. Senjem
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA, 55905
- Department of Information Technology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA, 55905
| | | | - Val J. Lowe
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA, 55905
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50
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Vogel JW, Corriveau-Lecavalier N, Franzmeier N, Pereira JB, Brown JA, Maass A, Botha H, Seeley WW, Bassett DS, Jones DT, Ewers M. Connectome-based modelling of neurodegenerative diseases: towards precision medicine and mechanistic insight. Nat Rev Neurosci 2023; 24:620-639. [PMID: 37620599 DOI: 10.1038/s41583-023-00731-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
Neurodegenerative diseases are the most common cause of dementia. Although their underlying molecular pathologies have been identified, there is substantial heterogeneity in the patterns of progressive brain alterations across and within these diseases. Recent advances in neuroimaging methods have revealed that pathological proteins accumulate along specific macroscale brain networks, implicating the network architecture of the brain in the system-level pathophysiology of neurodegenerative diseases. However, the extent to which 'network-based neurodegeneration' applies across the wide range of neurodegenerative disorders remains unclear. Here, we discuss the state-of-the-art of neuroimaging-based connectomics for the mapping and prediction of neurodegenerative processes. We review findings supporting brain networks as passive conduits through which pathological proteins spread. As an alternative view, we also discuss complementary work suggesting that network alterations actively modulate the spreading of pathological proteins between connected brain regions. We conclude this Perspective by proposing an integrative framework in which connectome-based models can be advanced along three dimensions of innovation: incorporating parameters that modulate propagation behaviour on the basis of measurable biological features; building patient-tailored models that use individual-level information and allowing model parameters to interact dynamically over time. We discuss promises and pitfalls of these strategies for improving disease insights and moving towards precision medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob W Vogel
- Department of Clinical Sciences, SciLifeLab, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
| | - Nick Corriveau-Lecavalier
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Nicolai Franzmeier
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Acadamy, University of Gothenburg, Mölndal and Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Joana B Pereira
- Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden
- Neuro Division, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jesse A Brown
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Anne Maass
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Hugo Botha
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - William W Seeley
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Dani S Bassett
- Departments of Bioengineering, Electrical and Systems Engineering, Physics and Astronomy, Neurology and Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, USA
| | - David T Jones
- Department of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
| | - Michael Ewers
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD), University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
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