Choroid plexus enlargement in secondary progressive MS: phenotype comparison.

Area of Science:

• Neuroimmunology
• Neuroimaging
• Biomarker Discovery

Background:

• The choroid plexus (CP) is implicated in chronic inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS).
• CP enlargement is noted in early MS, but its role in secondary progressive MS (SPMS) remains unclear.
• Understanding CP volume changes is crucial for MS progression insights.

Purpose of the Study:

• Quantify CP volume in SPMS patients.
• Compare CP volume across MS phenotypes (CIS, RRMS, SPMS).
• Assess CP volume associations with MS disease severity and progression.

Main Methods:

• Manual segmentation and normalization of CP volumes in 121 MS patients (CIS, RRMS, SPMS).
• Age correction using a healthy control cohort (n=109).
• Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses of CP volume, ventricular size, lesion burden, and brain atrophy.

Main Results:

• Significant CP volume increase across MS phenotypes: SPMS showed 32% higher than CIS and 25% higher than RRMS.
• CP enlargement in SPMS was independent of ventricular size.
• Baseline CP volume correlated significantly with chronic lesion expansion (r²=0.33) and brain volume loss (r²=0.51) in SPMS.

Conclusions:

• CP enlargement is a progressive feature of MS, distinct from ventricular expansion.
• In SPMS, CP enlargement may indicate ongoing inflammation and contribute to tissue damage.
• CP volume shows potential as a biomarker for MS progression and inflammation.