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Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
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Distributed corpus callosum involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a deterministic tractography study using
1MRI Research Center SUN-FISM, Second University of Naples, 80138, Naples, Italy.
Journal of Neurology
|October 16, 2013
Summary
Q-ball imaging reveals white matter abnormalities in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This neuroimaging technique identified consistent changes in the corpus callosum and corticospinal tracts, correlating with disease severity and progression.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Neurodegenerative Diseases
- White Matter
Background:
- Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is used for white matter (WM) abnormalities in motor neuron disease.
- Q-ball imaging (QBI) offers an alternative to DTI for depicting complex fiber tracts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish a QBI-based WM signature in phenotypically diverse amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cases.
- To explore motor and extra-motor WM tract abnormalities in ALS patients.
Main Methods:
- Whole-brain QBI tract-based spatial statistics with deterministic tractography.
- Analysis of genu, body, and splenium of corpus callosum (CC) and corticospinal tracts (CST).
- Comparison of 20 ALS patients (12 classical, 8 lower motor neuron variants) with 20 healthy controls.
Main Results:
- ALS patients exhibited reduced fiber density and volume in CC and left CST.
- Increased tract length was observed in CC and left CST of ALS patients.
- Correlations found between CC white matter integrity and clinical measures of pyramidal impairment, disability, and progression.
Conclusions:
- QBI tractography shows promise for investigating neurodegenerative diseases.
- Callosal white matter involvement is a consistent feature across most ALS variants.
- Structural alterations in ALS are significantly related to pyramidal dysfunction and disease disability.
