Multiple markers contribute to risk of progression from normal to mild cognitive impairment.

Objective: To identify a parsimonious set of markers that optimally predicts subsequent clinical progression from normal to mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Methods: 250 clinically normal adults (mean age = 73.6 years, SD = 6.

Connectome-derived diffusion characteristics of the fornix in Alzheimer's disease.

The fornix bundle is a major white matter pathway of the hippocampus. While volume of the hippocampus has been a primary imaging biomarker of Alzheimer's disease progression, recent research has suggested that the volume and microstructural characteristics of the fornix bundle connecting the hippocampus could add relevant information for diagnosing and staging Alzheimer's disease. Using a robust fornix bundle isolation technique in native diffusion space, this study investigated whether diffusion measurements of the fornix differed between normal older adults and Alzheimer's disease patients when controlling for volume measurements.

Global White Matter Diffusion Characteristics Predict Longitudinal Cognitive Change Independently of Amyloid Status in Clinically Normal Older Adults.

White matter degradation has been proposed as one possible explanation for age-related cognitive decline. In the present study, we examined 2 main questions: 1) Do diffusion characteristics predict longitudinal change in cognition independently or synergistically with amyloid status? 2) Are the effects of diffusion characteristics on longitudinal cognitive change tract-specific or global in nature? Cognitive domains of executive function, episodic memory, and processing speed were measured annually (mean follow-up = 3.93 ± 1.