18F-AV-1451 PET Imaging in Three Patients with Probable Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Neuroimaging
• Pathology

Background:

• Cerebrovascular amyloid-β deposition, or cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), is linked to MRI findings like lobar hemorrhage, microbleeds, and superficial siderosis.
• Pathological studies suggest tau may co-localize with vascular amyloid, but this remains uninvestigated in vivo in CAA.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the in vivo association between tau deposition and vascular amyloid markers in patients with probable CAA.
• To explore if tau pathology correlates with specific MRI findings characteristic of CAA.

Main Methods:

• Three patients with probable CAA underwent amyloid PET (11C-Pittsburgh Compound B or 18F-florbetaben) and tau PET (18F-AV-1451) imaging.
• Amyloid and tau PET data were analyzed to assess tracer uptake in relation to vascular pathology markers.

Main Results:

• Regions exhibiting cerebral microbleeds or cortical superficial siderosis showed significant overlap with areas of increased 18F-AV-1451 uptake.
• This suggests a spatial correlation between tau deposition and specific markers of vascular amyloid.

Conclusions:

• Preliminary findings indicate a potential association between lobar cerebral microbleeds, cortical superficial siderosis, and local paired helical filament tau production in CAA.
• This study highlights the possibility of localized tau pathology in vascular amyloidosis.