Document Detail


Hippocampal CA1 apical neuropil atrophy in mild Alzheimer disease visualized with 7-T MRI.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  20938031     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
OBJECTIVES: In Alzheimer disease (AD), mounting evidence points to a greater role for synaptic loss than neuronal loss. Supporting this notion, multiple postmortem studies have demonstrated that the hippocampal CA1 apical neuropil is one of the earliest sites of pathology, exhibiting tau aggregates and then atrophy before there is substantial loss of the CA1 pyramidal neurons themselves. In this cross-sectional study, we tested whether tissue loss in the CA1 apical neuropil layer can be observed in vivo in patients with mild AD.
METHODS: We performed ultra-high-field 7-T MRI on subjects with mild AD (n = 14) and age-matched normal controls (n = 16). With a 2-dimensional T2*-weighted gradient-recalled echo sequence that was easily tolerated by subjects, we obtained cross-sectional slices of the hippocampus at an in-plane resolution of 195 μm.
RESULTS: On images revealing the anatomic landmarks of hippocampal subfields and strata, we observed thinning of the CA1 apical neuropil in subjects with mild AD compared to controls. By contrast, the 2 groups exhibited no difference in the thickness of the CA1 cell body layer or of the entire CA1 subfield. Hippocampal volume, measured on a conventional T1-weighted sequence obtained at 3T, also did not differentiate these patients with mild AD from controls.
CONCLUSIONS: CA1 apical neuropil atrophy is apparent in patients with mild AD. With its superior spatial resolution, 7-T MRI permits in vivo analysis of a very focal, early site of AD pathology.
Authors:
G A Kerchner; C P Hess; K E Hammond-Rosenbluth; D Xu; G D Rabinovici; D A C Kelley; D B Vigneron; S J Nelson; B L Miller
Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Neurology     Volume:  75     ISSN:  1526-632X     ISO Abbreviation:  Neurology     Publication Date:  2010 Oct 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-10-12     Completed Date:  2010-10-29     Revised Date:  2012-05-07    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  0401060     Medline TA:  Neurology     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  1381-7     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
Stanford Center for Memory Disorders, Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305-5235, USA. kerchner@stanford.edu
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Aged
Alzheimer Disease / complications,  pathology*
Atrophy / etiology,  pathology
CA1 Region, Hippocampal / pathology*
Case-Control Studies
Female
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Magnetic Resonance Imaging / methods
Male
Mental Status Schedule
Middle Aged
Neuropil / pathology*
Statistics, Nonparametric
Grant Support
ID/Acronym/Agency:
K23 AG031861-04/AG/NIA NIH HHS
Comments/Corrections

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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