1. |
- Biel, D., et al.
(author)
-
Combining tau-PET and fMRI meta-analyses for patient-centered prediction of cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease
- 2022
-
In: Alzheimers Research & Therapy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1758-9193. ; 14:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background Tau-PET is a prognostic marker for cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease, and the heterogeneity of tau-PET patterns matches cognitive symptom heterogeneity. Thus, tau-PET may allow precision-medicine prediction of individual tau-related cognitive trajectories, which can be important for determining patient-specific cognitive endpoints in clinical trials. Here, we aimed to examine whether tau-PET in cognitive-domain-specific brain regions, identified via fMRI meta-analyses, allows the prediction of domain-specific cognitive decline. Further, we aimed to determine whether tau-PET-informed personalized cognitive composites capture patient-specific cognitive trajectories more sensitively than conventional cognitive measures. Methods We included Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) participants classified as controls (i.e., amyloid-negative, cognitively normal, n = 121) or Alzheimer's disease-spectrum (i.e., amyloid-positive, cognitively normal to dementia, n = 140), plus 111 AVID-1451-A05 participants for independent validation (controls/Alzheimer's disease-spectrum=46/65). All participants underwent baseline F-18-flortaucipir tau-PET, amyloid-PET, and longitudinal cognitive testing to assess annual cognitive changes (i.e., episodic memory, language, executive functioning, visuospatial). Cognitive changes were calculated using linear mixed models. Independent meta-analytical task-fMRI activation maps for each included cognitive domain were obtained from the Neurosynth database and applied to tau-PET to determine tau-PET signal in cognitive-domain-specific brain regions. In bootstrapped linear regression, we assessed the strength of the relationship (i.e., partial R-2) between cognitive-domain-specific tau-PET vs. global or temporal-lobe tau-PET and cognitive changes. Further, we used tau-PET-based prediction of domain-specific decline to compose personalized cognitive composites that were tailored to capture patient-specific cognitive decline. Results In both amyloid-positive cohorts (ADNI [age = 75.99 +/- 7.69] and A05 [age = 74.03 +/- 9.03]), cognitive-domain-specific tau-PET outperformed global and temporal-lobe tau-PET for predicting future cognitive decline in episodic memory, language, executive functioning, and visuospatial abilities. Further, a tau-PET-informed personalized cognitive composite across cognitive domains enhanced the sensitivity to assess cognitive decline in amyloid-positive subjects, yielding lower sample sizes required for detecting simulated intervention effects compared to conventional cognitive endpoints (i.e., memory composite, global cognitive composite). However, the latter effect was less strong in A05 compared to the ADNI cohort. Conclusion Combining tau-PET with task-fMRI-derived maps of major cognitive domains facilitates the prediction of domain-specific cognitive decline. This approach may help to increase the sensitivity to detect Alzheimer's disease-related cognitive decline and to determine personalized cognitive endpoints in clinical trials.
|
|
2. |
- Costoya-Sánchez, Alejandro, et al.
(author)
-
Increased Medial Temporal Tau Positron Emission Tomography Uptake in the Absence of Amyloid-β Positivity.
- 2023
-
In: JAMA neurology. - 2168-6157. ; 80:10, s. 1051-61
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- An increased tau positron emission tomography (PET) signal in the medial temporal lobe (MTL) has been observed in older individuals in the absence of amyloid-β (Aβ) pathology. Little is known about the longitudinal course of this condition, and its association with Alzheimer disease (AD) remains unclear.To study the pathologic and clinical course of older individuals with PET-evidenced MTL tau deposition (TMTL+) in the absence of Aβ pathology (A-), and the association of this condition with the AD continuum.A multicentric, observational, longitudinal cohort study was conducted using pooled data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), Harvard Aging Brain Study (HABS), and the AVID-A05 study, collected between July 2, 2015, and August 23, 2021. Participants in the ADNI, HABS, and AVID-A05 studies (N=1093) with varying degrees of cognitive performance were deemed eligible if they had available tau PET, Aβ PET, and magnetic resonance imaging scans at baseline. Of these, 128 participants did not meet inclusion criteria based on Aβ PET and tau PET biomarker profiles (A+ TMTL-).Tau and Aβ PET, magnetic resonance imaging, cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers, and cognitive assessments.Cross-sectional and longitudinal measures for tau and Aβ PET, cortical atrophy, cognitive scores, and core AD cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers (Aβ42/40 and tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 p-tau181 available in a subset).Among the 965 individuals included in the study, 503 were women (52.1%) and the mean (SD) age was 73.9 (8.1) years. A total of 51% of A- individuals and 78% of A+ participants had increased tau PET signal in the entorhinal cortex (TMTL+) compared with healthy younger (aged <39 years) controls. Compared with A- TMTL-, A- TMTL+ participants showed statistically significant, albeit moderate, longitudinal (mean [SD], 1.83 [0.84] years) tau PET increases that were largely limited to the temporal lobe, whereas those with A+ TMTL+ showed faster and more cortically widespread tau PET increases. In contrast to participants with A+ TMTL+, those with A- TMTL+ did not show any noticeable Aβ accumulation over follow-up (mean [SD], 2.36 [0.76] years). Complementary cerebrospinal fluid analysis confirmed longitudinal p-tau181 increases in A- TMTL+ in the absence of increased Aβ accumulation. Participants with A- TMTL+ had accelerated MTL atrophy, whereas those with A+ TMTL+ showed accelerated atrophy in widespread temporoparietal brain regions. Increased MTL tau PET uptake in A- individuals was associated with cognitive decline, but at a significantly slower rate compared with A+ TMTL+.In this study, individuals with A- TMTL+ exhibited progressive tau accumulation and neurodegeneration, but these processes were comparably slow, remained largely restricted to the MTL, were associated with only subtle changes in global cognitive performance, and were not accompanied by detectable accumulation of Aβ biomarkers. These data suggest that individuals with A- TMTL+ are not on a pathologic trajectory toward AD.
|
|
3. |
- Costoya-Sanchez, Alejandro, et al.
(author)
-
Partial volume correction in longitudinal tau PET studies: is it really needed?
- 2024
-
In: NEUROIMAGE. - 1053-8119 .- 1095-9572. ; 289
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: [18F]flortaucipir (FTP) tau PET quantification is known to be affected by non-specific binding in offtarget regions. Although partial volume correction (PVC) techniques partially account for this effect, their inclusion may also introduce noise and variability into the quantification process. While the impact of these effects has been studied in cross-sectional designs, the benefits and drawbacks of PVC on longitudinal FTP studies is still under scrutiny. The aim of this work was to study the performance of the most common PVC techniques for longitudinal FTP imaging. Methods: A cohort of 247 individuals from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative with concurrent baseline FTP-PET, amyloid-beta (A beta) PET and structural MRI, as well as with follow-up FTP-PET and MRI were included in the study. FTP-PET scans were corrected for partial volume effects using Meltzer's, a simple and popular analytical PVC, and both the region -based voxel-wise (RBV) and the iterative Yang (iY) corrections. FTP SUVR values and their longitudinal rates of change were calculated for regions of interest (ROI) corresponding to Braak Areas I -VI, for a temporal meta-ROI and for regions typically displaying off -target FTP binding (caudate, putamen, pallidum, thalamus, choroid plexus, hemispheric white matter, cerebellar white matter, and cerebrospinal fluid). The longitudinal correlation between binding in off -target and target ROIs was analysed for the different PVCs. Additionally, group differences in longitudinal FTP SUVR rates of change between A beta-negative (A-) and A beta-positive (A+), and between cognitively unimpaired (CU) and cognitively impaired (CI) individuals, were studied. Finally, we compared the ability of different partial -volume -corrected baseline FTP SUVRs to predict longitudinal brain atrophy and cognitive decline. Results: Among off -target ROIs, hemispheric white matter showed the highest correlation with longitudinal FTP SUVR rates from cortical target ROIs (R2=0.28-0.82), with CSF coming in second (R2=0.28-0.42). Application of voxel-wise PVC techniques minimized this correlation, with RBV performing best (R2=0.00-0.07 for hemispheric white matter). PVC also increased group differences between CU and CI individuals in FTP SUVR rates of change across all target regions, with RBV again performing best (No PVC: Cohen's d = 0.26-0.66; RBV: Cohen's d = 0.43-0.74). These improvements were not observed for differentiating A- from A+ groups. Additionally, voxelwise PVC techniques strengthened the correlation between baseline FTP SUVR and longitudinal grey matter atrophy and cognitive decline. Conclusion: Quantification of longitudinal FTP SUVR rates of change is affected by signal from off -target regions, especially the hemispheric white matter and the CSF. Voxel-wise PVC techniques significantly reduce this effect. PVC provided a significant but modest benefit for tasks involving the measurement of group -level longitudinal differences. These findings are particularly relevant for the estimations of sample sizes and analysis methodologies of longitudinal group studies.
|
|
4. |
- Franzmeier, Nicolai, 1989, et al.
(author)
-
Elevated CSF GAP-43 is associated with accelerated tau accumulation and spread in Alzheimer's disease.
- 2024
-
In: Nature communications. - 2041-1723. ; 15:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In Alzheimer's disease, amyloid-beta (Aβ) triggers the trans-synaptic spread of tau pathology, and aberrant synaptic activity has been shown to promote tau spreading. Aβ induces aberrant synaptic activity, manifesting in increases in the presynaptic growth-associated protein 43 (GAP-43), which is closely involved in synaptic activity and plasticity. We therefore tested whether Aβ-related GAP-43 increases, as a marker of synaptic changes, drive tau spreading in 93 patients across the aging and Alzheimer's spectrum with available CSF GAP-43, amyloid-PET and longitudinal tau-PET assessments. We found that (1) higher GAP-43 was associated with faster Aβ-related tau accumulation, specifically in brain regions connected closest to subject-specific tau epicenters and (2) that higher GAP-43 strengthened the association between Aβ and connectivity-associated tau spread. This suggests that GAP-43-related synaptic changes are linked to faster Aβ-related tau spread across connected regions and that synapses could be key targets for preventing tau spreading in Alzheimer's disease.
|
|
5. |
- Grothe, Michel J., 1981, et al.
(author)
-
Associations of Fully Automated CSF and Novel Plasma Biomarkers With Alzheimer Disease Neuropathology at Autopsy.
- 2021
-
In: Neurology. - 1526-632X. ; 97:12
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To study cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease (AD) analyzed by fully automated Elecsys immunoassays in comparison to neuropathologic gold standards, and compare their accuracy to plasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau181) measured using a novel Simoa method.We studied ante-mortem Elecsys-derived CSF biomarkers in 45 individuals who underwent standardized post-mortem assessments of AD and non-AD neuropathologic changes at autopsy. In a subset of 26 participants, we also analysed ante-mortem levels of plasma p-tau181 and neurofilament light (NfL). Reference biomarker values were obtained from 146 amyloid-PET-negative healthy controls (HC).All CSF biomarkers clearly distinguished pathology-confirmed AD dementia (N=27) from HC (AUCs=0.86-1.00). CSF total-tau (t-tau), p-tau181, and their ratios with Aβ1-42, also accurately distinguished pathology-confirmed AD from non-AD dementia (N=8; AUCs=0.94-0.97). In pathology-specific analyses, intermediate-to-high Thal amyloid phases were best detected by CSF Aβ1-42 (AUC[95% CI]=0.91[0.81-1]), while intermediate-to-high CERAD neuritic plaques and Braak tau stages were best detected by CSF p-tau181 (AUC=0.89[0.79-0.99] and 0.88[0.77-0.99], respectively). Optimal Elecsys biomarker cut-offs were derived at 1097/229/19 pg/ml for Aβ1-42, t-tau, and p-tau181. In the plasma subsample, both plasma p-tau181 (AUC=0.91[0.86-0.96]) and NfL (AUC=0.93[0.87-0.99]) accurately distinguished pathology-confirmed AD (N=14) from HC. However, only p-tau181 distinguished AD from non-AD dementia cases (N=4; AUC=0.96[0.88-1.00]), and showed a similar, though weaker, pathologic specificity for neuritic plaques (AUC=0.75[0.52-0.98]) and Braak stage (AUC=0.71[0.44-0.98]) as CSF p-tau181.Elecsys-derived CSF biomarkers detect AD neuropathologic changes with very high discriminative accuracy in-vivo. Preliminary findings support the use of plasma p-tau181 as an easily accessible and scalable biomarker of AD pathology.This study provides Class II evidence that fully-automated CSF t-tau and p-tau181measurements discriminate between autopsy-confirmed Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.
|
|
6. |
- Grothe, Michel J., 1981, et al.
(author)
-
Differential diagnosis of amnestic dementia patients based on an FDG-PET signature of autopsy-confirmed LATE-NC.
- 2022
-
In: Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association. - : Wiley. - 1552-5279. ; 19:4, s. 1234-44
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Limbic age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy neuropathologic change (LATE-NC) is common in advanced age and can underlie a clinical presentation mimicking Alzheimer's disease (AD). We studied whether an autopsy-derived fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) signature of LATE-NC provides clinical utility for differential diagnosis of amnestic dementia patients.Ante mortem FDG-PET patterns from autopsy-confirmed LATE-NC (N = 7) and AD (N = 23) patients were used to stratify an independent cohort of clinically diagnosed AD dementia patients (N = 242) based on individual FDG-PET profiles.Autopsy-confirmed LATE-NC and AD groups showed markedly distinct temporo-limbic and temporo-parietal FDG-PET patterns, respectively. Clinically diagnosed AD dementia patients showing a LATE-NC-like FDG-PET pattern (N = 25, 10%) were significantly older, showed less abnormal AD biomarker levels, lower APOE ε4, and higher TMEM106B risk allele load. Clinically, they exhibited a more memory-predominant profile and a generally slower disease course.An autopsy-derived temporo-limbic FDG-PET signature identifies older amnestic patients whose clinical, genetic, and molecular biomarker features are consistent with underlying LATE-NC.
|
|
7. |
- Karikari, Thomas, et al.
(author)
-
Diagnostic performance and prediction of clinical progression of plasma phospho-tau181 in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative.
- 2021
-
In: Molecular psychiatry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1476-5578 .- 1359-4184. ; 26, s. 429-442
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Whilst cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and positron emission tomography (PET) biomarkers for amyloid-β (Aβ) and tau pathologies are accurate for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), their broad implementation in clinical and trial settings are restricted by high cost and limited accessibility. Plasma phosphorylated-tau181 (p-tau181) is a promising blood-based biomarker that is specific for AD, correlates with cerebral Aβ and tau pathology, and predicts future cognitive decline. In this study, we report the performance of p-tau181 in >1000 individuals from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), including cognitively unimpaired (CU), mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD dementia patients characterized by Aβ PET. We confirmed that plasma p-tau181 is increased at the preclinical stage of Alzheimer and further increases in MCI and AD dementia. Individuals clinically classified as AD dementia but having negative Aβ PET scans show little increase but plasma p-tau181 is increased if CSF Aβ has already changed prior to Aβ PET changes. Despite being a multicenter study, plasma p-tau181 demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy to identify AD dementia (AUC=85.3%; 95% CI, 81.4-89.2%), as well as to distinguish between Aβ- and Aβ+ individuals along the Alzheimer's continuum (AUC=76.9%; 95% CI, 74.0-79.8%). Higher baseline concentrations of plasma p-tau181 accurately predicted future dementia and performed comparably to the baseline prediction of CSF p-tau181. Longitudinal measurements of plasma p-tau181 revealed low intra-individual variability, which could be of potential benefit in disease-modifying trials seeking a measurable response to a therapeutic target. This study adds significant weight to the growing body of evidence in the use of plasma p-tau181 as a non-invasive diagnostic and prognostic tool for AD, regardless of clinical stage, which would be of great benefit in clinical practice and a large cost-saving in clinical trial recruitment.
|
|
8. |
- Lopez-Gonzalez, F. J., et al.
(author)
-
Impact of spill-in counts from off-target regions on F-18 Flortaucipir PET quantification
- 2022
-
In: Neuroimage. - : Elsevier BV. - 1053-8119. ; 259
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: [F-18]Flortaucipir (FTP) PET quantification is usually hindered by spill-in counts from off-target binding (OFF) regions. The present work aims to provide an in-depth analysis of the impact of OFF in FTP PET quantification, as well as to identify optimal partial volume correction (PVC) strategies to minimize this problem. Methods: 309 amyloid-beta (A beta) negative cognitively normal subjects were included in the study. Additionally, 510 realistic FTP images with different levels of OFF were generated using Monte Carlo simulation (MC). Images were corrected for PVC using both a simple two-compartment and a multi-region method including OFF regions. FTP standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) was quantified in Braak Areas (BA), the hippocampus (which was not included in Braak I/II) and different OFF regions (caudate, putamen, pallidum, thalamus, choroid plexus (ChPlex), cerebellar white matter (cerebWM), hemispheric white matter (hemisWM) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)) using the lower portion of the cerebellum as a reference region. The correlations between OFF and cortical SUVRs were studied both in real and in simulated PET images, with and without PVC. Results: In-vivo, we found correlations between all OFF and target regions, especially strong for the hemisWM (slope>0.63, R-2>0.4). All the correlations were attenuated but remained significant after applying PVC, except for the ChPlex. In MC simulations, the hemisWM and CSF were the main contributors to PVE in all BA (slopes 0.15-0.26 and 0.13-0.21 respectively). The hemisWM (slope=0.2), as well as the ChPlex (slope=0.02), influenced SUVRs in the hippocampus. The CerebWM was negatively correlated with all target regions (slope<-0.02, R-2>0.8). While no other correlations between OFF and target regions were found, hemisWM was correlated with all OFF regions but the cerebWM (slopes 0.06-0.33). HemisWM correlations attenuated (slopes<0.06) when applying two-compartment PVC, but the hippocampus-ChPlex and the cerebWM correlations required more complex PVC with dedicated compartments for these regions. In-vivo, PVC removed a notably higher fraction of the correlation between OFF regions found to be affected by PVE in the simulation studies and BA (approximate to 50%) than for OFF regions not affected by PVE (16%). Conclusion: HemisWM is the main driver of spill-in effects in FTP PET, affecting both target regions and the rest of OFF regions. PVC successfully reduces PVE, even when using a simple two-compartment method. Despite PVC, non-zero correlations were still observed between target and OFF regions in vivo, which suggests the existence of biological or tracer-related contributions to these correlations.
|
|
9. |
- Rial, Alexis Moscoso, et al.
(author)
-
CSF biomarkers and plasma p-tau181 as predictors of longitudinal tau accumulation: Implications for clinical trial design
- 2022
-
In: Alzheimer's and Dementia. - : Wiley. - 1552-5260 .- 1552-5279. ; 18:12, s. 2614-2626
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Introduction: Clinical trials targeting tau in Alzheimer's disease (AD) need to recruit individuals at risk of tau accumulation. Here, we studied cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers and plasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau)181 as predictors of tau accumulation on positron emission tomography (PET) to evaluate implications for trial designs. Methods: We included older individuals who had serial tau-PET scans, baseline amyloid beta (Aβ)-PET, and baseline CSF biomarkers (n=163) or plasma p-tau181 (n=74). We studied fluid biomarker associations with tau accumulation and estimated trial sample sizes and screening failure reductions by implementing these markers into participant selection for trials. Results: P-tau181 in CSF and plasma predicted tau accumulation (r>0.36, P<.001), even in AD-continuum individuals with normal baseline tau-PET (A+T–; r>0.37, P<.05). Recruitment based on CSF biomarkers yielded comparable sample sizes to Aβ-PET. Prescreening with plasma p-tau181 reduced up to ≈50% of screening failures. Discussion: Clinical trials testing tau-targeting therapies may benefit from using fluid biomarkers to recruit individuals at risk of tau aggregation. © 2022 The Authors. Alzheimer's & Dementia published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Alzheimer's Association
|
|
10. |
- Rial, Alexis Moscoso, et al.
(author)
-
F-18-florbetapir PET as a marker of myelin integrity across the Alzheimer's disease spectrum
- 2022
-
In: European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1619-7070 .- 1619-7089. ; 49:4, s. 1242-1253
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose Recent evidence suggests that PET imaging with amyloid-beta (A beta) tracers can be used to assess myelin integrity in cerebral white matter (WM). Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by myelin changes that are believed to occur early in the disease course. Nevertheless, the extent to which demyelination, as measured with A beta PET, contributes to AD progression remains unexplored. Methods Participants with concurrent F-18-florbetapir (FBP) PET, MRI, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) examinations were included (241 cognitively normal, 347 A beta-positive cognitively impaired, and 207 A beta-negative cognitively impaired subjects). A subset of these participants had also available diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) images (n = 195). We investigated cross-sectional associations of FBP retention in the white matter (WM) with MRI-based markers of WM degeneration, AD clinical progression, and fluid biomarkers. In longitudinal analyses, we used linear mixed models to assess whether FBP retention in normal-appearing WM (NAWM) predicted progression of WM hyperintensity (WMH) burden and clinical decline. Results In AD-continuum individuals, FBP retention in NAWM was (1) higher compared with WMH regions, (2) associated with DTI-based measures of WM integrity, and (3) associated with longitudinal progression of WMH burden. FBP uptake in WM decreased across the AD continuum and with increasingly abnormal CSF biomarkers of AD. Furthermore, FBP retention in the WM was associated with large-calibre axon degeneration as reflected by abnormal plasma neurofilament light chain levels. Low FBP uptake in NAWM predicted clinical decline in preclinical and prodromal AD, independent of demographics, global cortical A beta, and WMH burden. Most of these associations were also observed in A beta-negative cognitively impaired individuals. Conclusion These results support the hypothesis that FBP retention in the WM is myelin-related. Demyelination levels progressed across the AD continuum and were associated with clinical progression at early stages, suggesting that this pathologic process might be a relevant degenerative feature in the disease course.
|
|