Alterations in Gray Matter Structural Networks in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Source-Based Morphometry Study.

Background: Amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), considered as the prodromal stage of Alzheimer's disease, is characterized by isolated memory impairment and cerebral gray matter volume (GMV) alterations. Previous structural MRI studies in aMCI have been mainly based on univariate statistics using voxel-based morphometry.

Objective: We investigated structural network differences between aMCI patients and cognitively normal older adults by using source-based morphometry, a multivariate approach that considers the relationship between voxels of various parts of the brain.

Comparison of univariate and multivariate analyses for brain [18F]FDG PET data in α-synucleinopathies.

Background: Brain imaging with [18F]FDG-PET can support the diagnostic work-up of patients with α-synucleinopathies. Validated data analysis approaches are necessary to evaluate disease-specific brain metabolism patterns in neurodegenerative disorders. This study compared the univariate Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) single-subject procedure and the multivariate Scaled Subprofile Model/Principal Component Analysis (SSM/PCA) in a cohort of patients with α-synucleinopathies.

FDG-PET combined with learning vector quantization allows classification of neurodegenerative diseases and reveals the trajectory of idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder.

Background And Objectives: F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) combined with principal component analysis (PCA) has been applied to identify disease-related brain patterns in neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD), Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). These patterns are used to quantify functional brain changes at the single subject level. This is especially relevant in determining disease progression in idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD), a prodromal stage of PD and DLB.

Alzheimer's disease pattern derived from relative cerebral flow as an alternative for the metabolic pattern using SSM/PCA.

Background: 2-Deoxy-2-[F]fluoroglucose (FDG) PET is an important tool for the identification of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients through the characteristic neurodegeneration pattern that these patients present. Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) images derived from dynamic C-labelled Pittsburgh Compound B (PIB) have been shown to present a similar pattern as FDG. Moreover, multivariate analysis techniques, such as scaled subprofile modelling using principal component analysis (SSM/PCA), can be used to generate disease-specific patterns (DP) that may aid in the classification of subjects.

Planning in amnestic mild cognitive impairment: an fMRI study.

Introduction: The memory impairment that is characteristic of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) is often accompanied by difficulties in executive functioning, including planning. Though planning deficits in aMCI are well documented, their neural correlates are largely unknown, and have not yet been investigated with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Objectives: The aim of this study was to: (1) identify differences in brain activity and connectivity during planning between people with aMCI and cognitively healthy older adults, and (2) find whether planning-related activity and connectivity are associated with cognitive performance and symptoms of apathy.

Serum and cerebrospinal fluid Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) levels as biomarkers for the conversion from mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer's disease dementia.

Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is an acute phase protein that has been reported as a potential marker for pre-dementia stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Longitudinal studies for its association with the conversion of mild cognitive impairment to AD is still lacking. This study included n = 268 study participants with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) (n=82), mild cognitive impairment (MCI) (n=98) and AD dementia (n=88) at baseline and two-year follow-up clinical assessments.

Feasibility of pharmacokinetic parametric PET images in scaled subprofile modelling using principal component analysis.

Scaled subprofile model using principal component analysis (SSM/PCA) is a multivariate analysis technique used, mainly in [F]-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (FDG) PET studies, for the generation of disease-specific metabolic patterns (DP) that may aid with the classification of subjects with neurological disorders, like Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of this study was to explore the feasibility of using quantitative parametric images for this type of analysis, with dynamic [C]-labelled Pittsburgh Compound B (PIB) PET data as an example. Therefore, 15 AD patients and 15 healthy control subjects were included in an SSM/PCA analysis to generate four AD-DPs using relative cerebral blood flow (R), binding potential (BP) and SUVR images derived from dynamic PIB and static FDG-PET studies.

Temporal dynamics of depression, cognitive performance and sleep in older persons with depressive symptoms and cognitive impairments: a series of eight single-subject studies.

Objectives: To investigate the presence, nature and direction of the daily temporal association between depressive symptoms, cognitive performance and sleep in older individuals.

Design, Setting, Participants: Single-subject study design in eight older adults with cognitive impairments and depressive symptoms.

Measurements: For 63 consecutive days, depressive symptoms, working memory performance and night-time sleep duration were daily assessed with an electronic diary and actigraphy.

Amyloid burden quantification depends on PET and MR image processing methodology.

Quantification of amyloid load with positron emission tomography can be useful to assess Alzheimer's Disease in-vivo. However, quantification can be affected by the image processing methodology applied. This study's goal was to address how amyloid quantification is influenced by different semi-automatic image processing pipelines.

Widespread white matter aberration is associated with the severity of apathy in amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment: Tract-based spatial statistics analysis.

Apathy is recognized as a prevalent behavioral symptom of amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI). In aMCI, apathy is associated with an increased risk and increases the risk of progression to Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Previous DTI study in aMCI showed that apathy has been associated with white matter alterations in the cingulum, middle and inferior longitudinal fasciculus, fornix, and uncinate fasciculus.

Uptake and effectiveness of a tailor-made online lifestyle programme targeting modifiable risk factors for dementia among middle-aged descendants of people with recently diagnosed dementia: study protocol of a cluster randomised controlled trial (Demin study).

Introduction: Descendants of patients with dementia have a higher risk to develop dementia. This study aims to investigate the uptake and effectiveness of an online tailor-made lifestyle programme for dementia risk reduction (DRR) among middle-aged descendants of people with recently diagnosed late-onset dementia.

Methods And Analysis: Demin is a cluster randomised controlled trial, aiming to include 21 memory clinics of which 13 will be randomly allocated to the passive (poster and flyer in a waiting room) and 8 to the active recruitment strategy (additional personal invitation by members of the team of the memory clinic).

Emotion Recognition and Traffic-Related Risk-Taking Behavior in Patients with Neurodegenerative Diseases.

Objectives: Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), such as Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies, and Huntington's disease, inevitably lead to impairments in higher-order cognitive functions, including the perception of emotional cues and decision-making behavior. Such impairments are likely to cause risky daily life behavior, for instance, in traffic. Impaired recognition of emotional expressions, such as fear, is considered a marker of impaired experience of emotions.

Diagnostic performance of regional cerebral blood flow images derived from dynamic PIB scans in Alzheimer's disease.

Background: In clinical practice, visual assessment of glucose metabolism images is often used for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) through 2-[F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) scans. However, visual assessment of the characteristic AD hypometabolic pattern relies on the expertise of the reader. Therefore, user-independent pipelines are preferred to evaluate the images and to classify the subjects.

Correction: Relative cerebral flow from dynamic PIB scans as an alternative for FDG scans in Alzheimer's disease PET studies.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Relative cerebral flow from dynamic PIB scans as an alternative for FDG scans in Alzheimer's disease PET studies.

In Alzheimer's Disease (AD) dual-tracer positron emission tomography (PET) studies with 2-[18F]-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) and 11C-labelled Pittsburgh Compound B (PIB) are used to assess metabolism and cerebral amyloid-β deposition, respectively. Regional cerebral metabolism and blood flow (rCBF) are closely coupled, both providing an index for neuronal function. The present study compared PIB-derived rCBF, estimated by the ratio of tracer influx in target regions relative to reference region (R1) and early-stage PIB uptake (ePIB), to FDG scans.

Lower Choline and Myo-Inositol in Temporo-Parietal Cortex Is Associated With Apathy in Amnestic MCI.

Apathy is a common symptom in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and is associated with an increased risk of progression to Alzheimer's disease (AD). The neural substrates underlying apathy in aMCI may involve multiple brain regions, including the anterior cingulate cortex and the temporo-parietal region. Here we investigated neurometabolites in brain regions that may underlie apathy in aMCI patients using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-MRS).

Association of Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Insulin with Cognitive Performance and CSF Biomarkers of Alzheimer's Disease.

Background: Abnormal insulin signaling in the brain has been linked to Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Objective: To evaluate whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) insulin levels are associated with cognitive performance and CSF amyloid-β and Tau. Additionally, we explore whether any such association differs by sex or APOE ɛ4 genotype.

FDG PET, dopamine transporter SPECT, and olfaction: Combining biomarkers in REM sleep behavior disorder.

Background: Idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder is a prodromal stage of Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies. Hyposmia, reduced dopamine transporter binding, and expression of the brain metabolic PD-related pattern were each associated with increased risk of conversion to PD. The objective of this study was to study the relationship between the PD-related pattern, dopamine transporter binding, and olfaction in idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder.

CSF α-synuclein does not discriminate dementia with Lewy bodies from Alzheimer's disease.

In this study, we assessed whether cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of the biomarker α-synuclein have a diagnostic value in differential diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). We also analyzed associations between CSF biomarkers and cognitive performance in DLB and in AD. We included 35 DLB patients, 63 AD patients, 18 patients with Parkinson's disease (PD), and 34 patients with subjective complaints (SC).

[Self-neglect in older adults--a complex problem].

A 76-year-old man presented at the emergency department with functional decline and extreme self-neglect. He died after a few days. The probable cause of death was pneumonia.