Magnetization transfer imaging of gray and white matter in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease

van Es, A.C.G.M.; van der Flier, W.M.; Admiraal-Behloul, F.; Olofsen, H.; Bollen, E.L.E.M.; Middelkoop, H.A.M.; Weverling-Rijnsburger, A.W.E.; Westendorp, R.G.J.; van Buchem, M.A.

doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2005.09.042

« Previous Next »Neurobiology of Aging
Volume 27, Issue 12 , Pages 1757-1762, December 2006

Magnetization transfer imaging of gray and white matter in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease

A.C.G.M. van Es
- Department of Radiology, C2-S, Leiden University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +31 71 5261484; fax: +31 71 5248256.
W.M. van der Flier
- Department of Neurology and Alzheimer Center, Vrije Universiteit Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
F. Admiraal-Behloul
- Section of Image processing (LKEB) of the Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
H. Olofsen
- Section of Image processing (LKEB) of the Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
E.L.E.M. Bollen
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
H.A.M. Middelkoop
- Department of Neurology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
A.W.E. Weverling-Rijnsburger
- Section of Gerontology and Geriatrics of the Department of General Internal Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
R.G.J. Westendorp
- Section of Gerontology and Geriatrics of the Department of General Internal Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
M.A. van Buchem
- Department of Radiology, C2-S, Leiden University Medical Center, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands

Received 4 April 2005; received in revised form 27 September 2005; accepted 29 September 2005. published online 15 November 2005.

Abstract

Objective

To assess whether structural brain damage as detected by magnetization transfer imaging (MTI) in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is located in the gray matter (GM) and/or the white matter (WM).

Methods

Fifty-five AD patients, 19 MCI patients and 43 subjects with normal cognitive function participated in this study. GM and WM segmentations were generated from dual fast spin-echo MR images. These masks were co-registrated to MT images for volumetric MTI-analysis of the GM and WM.

Results

AD patients had a lower GM volume than controls. Both MCI and AD patients had more structural brain damage in both GM and WM than subjects with normal cognition. Cerebral lesion load in both GM and WM was associated with the degree of cognitive impairment.

Conclusion

Using MTI, structural brain changes that are related to cognitive impairment could be demonstrated in both GM and WM of patients with AD and MCI. These results suggest that cerebral changes are present in GM and WM even before patients are clinically demented.

Keywords: Magnetic resonance imaging, Magnetization transfer imaging, Alzheimer's disease, Mild cognitive impairment, White matter, Grey matter