We found a match
Your institution may have rights to this item. Sign in to continue.
- Title
Diffusion MRI tractography of the locus coeruleus‐transentorhinal cortex connections using GO‐ESP.
- Authors
Solders, Seraphina K.; Galinsky, Vitaly L.; Clark, Alexandra L.; Sorg, Scott F.; Weigand, Alexandra J.; Bondi, Mark W.; Frank, Lawrence R.
- Abstract
Purpose: The locus coeruleus (LC) is implicated as an early site of protein pathogenesis in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Tau pathology is hypothesized to propagate in a prion‐like manner along the LC‐transentorhinal cortex (TEC) white matter (WM) pathway, leading to atrophy of the entorhinal cortex and adjacent cortical regions in a progressive and stereotypical manner. However, WM damage along the LC‐TEC pathway may be an earlier observable change that can improve detection of preclinical AD. Theory and Methods: Diffusion‐weighted MRI (dMRI) allows reconstruction of WM pathways in vivo, offering promising potential to examine this pathway and enhance our understanding of neural mechanisms underlying the preclinical phase of AD. However, standard dMRI analysis tools have generally been unable to reliably reconstruct this pathway. We apply a novel method, geometric‐optics based entropy spectrum pathways (GO‐ESP) and produce a new measure of connectivity: the equilibrium probability (EP). Results: We demonstrated reliable reconstruction of LC‐TEC pathways in 50 cognitively normal older adults and showed a negative association between LC‐TEC EP and cerebrospinal fluid tau. Using Human Connectome Project data, we demonstrated replicability of the method across acquisition schemes and scanners. Finally, we compared our findings with the only other existing LC‐TEC tractography template, and replicated their pathway as well as investigated the source of these discrepant findings. Conclusions: AD‐related tau pathology may be detectable within GO‐ESP‐identified LC‐TEC pathways. Furthermore, there may be multiple possible routes from LC to TEC, raising important questions for future research on the LC‐TEC connectome and its role in AD pathogenesis.
- Subjects
DIFFUSION magnetic resonance imaging; DIFFUSION tensor imaging; LOCUS coeruleus; ENTORHINAL cortex; WHITE matter (Nerve tissue)
- Publication
Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 2022, Vol 87, Issue 4, p1816
- ISSN
0740-3194
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1002/mrm.29088