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Decrease of N-acetylaspartate in the MTL correlates with cognitive decline of AD patients

F Jessen1, W Block, F Träber

  • 1Department of Psychiatry, University of Bonn, Germany. jessen@uni-bonn.de

Neurology
|September 12, 2001
PubMed

Insights

N-acetylaspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr) levels in the medial temporal lobe correlate with Alzheimer's disease (AD) progression. Reductions in NAA/Cr indicate cognitive decline, but are less useful for tracking subtle changes in stable patients.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroimaging
  • Biochemistry
  • Neurology

Background:

  • Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder.
  • Medial temporal lobe (MTL) structures are crucial for memory and are affected early in AD.
  • Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)H-MRS) can measure brain metabolites non-invasively.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the longitudinal changes in N-acetylaspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr) ratios in the MTL of AD patients.
  • To correlate these metabolic changes with cognitive decline over time.

Main Methods:

  • A follow-up study utilizing (1)H-MRS was conducted.
  • Measurements of NAA/Cr were taken in the MTL of patients with AD.
  • Cognitive function was assessed to track decline.

Main Results:

  • Severely progressed AD patients showed a significant reduction in MTL NAA/Cr.
  • Stable or mildly progressed patients exhibited a slight increase in MTL NAA/Cr.
  • A correlation was found between reduced NAA/Cr and cognitive deterioration.

Conclusions:

  • MTL NAA/Cr reduction serves as a biomarker for cognitive deterioration in AD.
  • Monitoring NAA/Cr is less effective for detecting subtle longitudinal changes in clinically stable AD patients.

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