Correlation between white matter damage and gray matter lesions in multiple sclerosis patients

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Neurology
• Radiology

Background:

• Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the central nervous system.
• White matter (WM) and gray matter (GM) integrity are compromised in MS, impacting neurological function.
• Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is sensitive to microstructural changes in brain tissue.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate white matter fiber and gray matter changes in relapsing-remitting MS patients using DTI.
• To correlate fractional anisotropy (FA) values with whole-brain gray matter volume changes.
• To identify specific brain regions affected by white matter injury and gray matter atrophy in MS.

Main Methods:

• Acquisition of head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and DTI data from 20 MS patients and 20 healthy controls.
• Analysis of fractional anisotropy (FA) values in white matter tracts.
• Voxel-based morphometry to assess gray matter (GM) volume differences and correlations.

Main Results:

• MS patients exhibited reduced FA values in multiple white matter tracts, including the corpus callosum, thalamic radiation, and corticospinal tract.
• Significant gray matter volume reduction was observed in MS patients across various lobes (frontal, parietal, temporal, occipital) and subcortical structures (caudate nucleus, insula, hippocampus).
• Positive correlation found between gray matter atrophy voxel size and FA values in white matter association fibers.

Conclusions:

• White matter fiber bundles are extensively injured in multiple sclerosis.
• Key areas of gray matter atrophy in MS include the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, caudate nucleus, parahippocampal gyrus, and cingulate gyrus.
• Gray matter atrophy is strongly associated with white matter injury, particularly to association fibers, in MS patients.