Visualization of beta-amyloid plaques in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease using MR microscopy without contrast reagents.

The visualization of beta-amyloid plaque deposition in brain, a key feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD), is important for the evaluation of disease progression and the efficacy of therapeutic interventions. In this study, beta-amyloid plaques in the PS/APP transgenic mouse brain, a model of human AD pathology, were detected using MR microscopy without contrast reagents. beta-Amyloid plaques were clearly visible in the cortex, thalamus, and hippocampus of fixed brains of PS/APP mice. The distribution of plaques identified by MRI was in excellent agreement with those found in the immunohistological analysis of the same brain sections. It was also demonstrated that image contrast for beta-amyloid plaques was present in freshly excised nonfixed brains. Furthermore, the detection of beta-amyloid plaques was achieved with a scan time as short as 2 hr, approaching the scan time considered reasonable for in vivo imaging.     

MRI assessment of neuropathology in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

The cerebral deposition of amyloid beta-peptide, a central event in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis, begins several years before the onset of clinical symptoms. Noninvasive detection of AD pathology at this initial stage would facilitate intervention and enhance treatment success. In this study, high-field MRI was used to detect changes in regional brain MR relaxation times in three types of mice: 1). transgenic mice (PS/APP) carrying both mutant genes for amyloid precursor protein (APP) and presenilin (PS), which have high levels and clear accumulation of beta-amyloid in several brain regions, starting from 10 weeks of age; 2). transgenic mice (PS) carrying only a mutant gene for presenilin (PS), which show subtly elevated levels of Abeta-peptide without beta-amyloid deposition; and 3). nontransgenic (NTg) littermates as controls. The transverse relaxation time T(2), an intrinsic MR parameter thought to reflect impaired cell physiology, was significantly reduced in the hippocampus, cingulate, and retrosplenial cortex, but not the corpus callosum, of PS-APP mice compared to NTg. No differences in T(1) values or proton density were detected between any groups of mice. These results indicate that T(2) may be a sensitive marker of abnormalities in this transgenic mouse model of AD.     

MRI and histological analysis of beta‐amyloid plaques in both human Alzheimer's disease and APP/PS1 transgenic mice

Purpose

To investigate the relationship between MR image contrast associated with beta‐amyloid (Aβ) plaques and their histology and compare the histopathological basis of image contrast and the relaxation mechanism associated with Aβ plaques in human Alzheimer's disease (AD) and transgenic APP/PS1 mouse tissues.

Materials and Methods

With the aid of the previously developed histological coil, T‐weighted images and R parametric maps were directly compared with histology stains acquired from the same set of Alzheimer's and APP/PS1 tissue slices.

Results

The electron microscopy and histology images revealed significant differences in plaque morphology and associated iron concentration between AD and transgenic APP/PS1 mice tissue samples. For AD tissues, T contrast of Aβ‐plaques was directly associated with the gradation of iron concentration. Plaques with significantly less iron load in the APP/PS1 animal tissues are equally conspicuous as the human plaques in the MR images.

Conclusion

These data suggest a duality in the relaxation mechanism where both high focal iron concentration and highly compact fibrillar beta‐amyloid masses cause rapid proton transverse magnetization decay. For human tissues, the former mechanism is likely the dominant source of R relaxation; for APP/PS1 animals, the latter is likely the major cause of increased transverse proton relaxation rate in Aβ plaques. The data presented are essential for understanding the histopathological underpinning of MRI measurement associated with Aβ plaques in humans and animals. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2009;29:997–1007. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Detection of amyloid plaques in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease by magnetic resonance imaging.

We performed three-dimensional, high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of fixed mouse brains to determine whether MRI can detect amyloid plaques in transgenic mouse models of Alzheimer's disease. Plaque-like structures in the cortex and hippocampus could be clearly identified in T2-weighted images with an image resolution of 46 microm x 72 microm x 72 microm. The locations of plaques were confirmed in coregistration studies comparing MR images with Congo red-stained histological results. This technique is quantitative, less labor-intensive compared to histology, and is free from artifacts related to sectioning process (deformation and missing tissues). It enabled us to study the distribution of plaques in the entire brain in 3D. The results of this study suggest that this method may be useful for assessing treatment efficacy in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease (AD).     

Longitudinal assessment of Alzheimer's beta-amyloid plaque development in transgenic mice monitored by in vivo magnetic resonance microimaging

PURPOSE: To assess the development of beta-amyloid (Abeta) plaques in the brain with age in the transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology by in vivo magnetic resonance microimaging (microMRI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Live transgenic mice (Tg2576) and nontransgenic littermates (control) were studied at regular intervals between the ages of 12 and 18 months. Plaques were visualized using a T(2)-weighted rapid acquisition with relaxation enhancement (RARE) sequence. Changes in T(2) relaxation times were followed using a multislice multiecho (MSME) sequence. Plaque load and numerical density in MR images were calculated using SCIL image software. RESULTS: Abeta plaques were clearly detected with the T(2)-weighted RARE sequence in the hippocampal and cortical regions of the brain of Tg2576 mice but not in control mice. Following the plaque development in the same animals with age showed that plaque area, number, and size increased markedly, while T(2) relaxation time showed a decreasing trend with age. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate that microMRI is a viable method for following the development of Abeta plaques in vivo, and suggest that this method may be feasible for assessing the effect of therapeutic interventions over time in the same animals.     

Transverse relaxation time reflects brain amyloidosis in young APP/PS1 transgenic mice.

Amyloid deposits are one of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD), one of the most devastating neurodegenerative disorders. In transgenic mice modeling Alzheimer's pathology, the MR transverse relaxation time (T(2)) has been described to be modulated by amyloidosis. This modification has been attributed to the age-related iron deposition that occurs within the amyloid plaques of old animals. In the present study, young APP/PS1 transgenic mice without histochemically detectable iron in the brain were specifically studied. In vivo measurements of T(2) in the hippocampus, at the level of the subiculum, were shown to reflect the density of amyloid plaques. This suggests that T(2) variations can be induced solely by aggregated amyloid deposits in the absence of associated histologically-detectable iron. Thus T(2) from regions with high amyloid load, such as the subiculum, is particularly well suited for following plaque deposition in young animals, i.e., at the earliest stages of the pathological process.     

In vivo visualization of Alzheimer's amyloid plaques by magnetic resonance imaging in transgenic mice without a contrast agent.

One of the cardinal pathologic features of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the formation of senile, or amyloid, plaques. Transgenic mice have been developed that express one or more of the genes responsible for familial AD in humans. Doubly transgenic mice develop "human-like" plaques, providing a mechanism to study amyloid plaque biology in a controlled manner. Imaging of labeled plaques has been accomplished with other modalities, but only MRI has sufficient spatial and contrast resolution to visualize individual plaques noninvasively. Methods to optimize visualization of plaques in vivo in transgenic mice at 9.4 T using a spin echo sequence based on adiabatic pulses are described. Preliminary results indicate that a spin echo acquisition more accurately reflects plaque size, while a T2* weighted gradient echo sequence reflects plaque iron content, not plaque size. In vivo MRI-ex vivo MRI-in vitro histologic correlations are provided. Histologically verified plaques as small as 50 microm in diameter were visualized in living animals. To our knowledge this work represents the first demonstration of noninvasive in vivo visualization of individual AD plaques without the use of a contrast agent.     

In vivo measurement of plaque burden in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease

PURPOSE: To demonstrate an MRI method for directly visualizing amyloid-beta (Abeta) plaques in the APP/PS1 transgenic (tg) mouse brain in vivo, and show that T1rho relaxation rate increases progressively with Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related pathology in the tg mouse brain. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We obtained in vivo MR images of a mouse model of AD (APP/PS1) that overexpresses human amyloid precursor protein, and measured T1rho via quantitative relaxometric maps. RESULTS: A significant decrease in T1rho was observed in the cortex and hippocampus of 12- and 18-month-old animals compared to their age-matched controls. There was also a correlation between changes in T1rho and the age of the animals. CONCLUSION: T1rho relaxometry may be a sensitive method for noninvasively determining AD-related pathology in APP/PS1 mice.     

1.4T study of proton magnetic relaxation rates, iron concentrations, and plaque burden in Alzheimer's disease and control postmortem brain tissue.

We measured proton magnetic longitudinal (R(1)) and transverse (R(2)) relaxation rates at 1.4T, iron concentrations, water contents, and amyloid plaque densities in postmortem brain tissue samples from three Alzheimer's disease (AD), two possible AD, and five control subjects. Iron concentrations and R(1) were significantly higher in the temporal cortex region of our AD group compared to the controls. Frequency analyses showed that the observed trends of higher iron, R(1), and R(2) in AD gray matter regions were statistically significant. Simple regression models indicated that for AD and control gray matter the iron concentrations and water contents have significant linear correlations with R(1) and R(2). Multiple regression models based on iron concentrations and water contents were highly significant for all groups and tissue types and suggested that the effects of iron become more important in determining R(1) and R(2) in the AD samples. At 1.4T R(1) and R(2) are strongly affected by water content and to a lesser extent by variations in iron concentrations. The AD plaque density did not correlate with iron concentrations, water contents, R(1), or R(2), suggesting that increases in AD brain iron are not strongly related to the accumulation of amyloid plaques.     

Correlation of iron in the hippocampus with MMSE in patients with Alzheimer's disease

Purpose

To investigate the brain iron deposits in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and healthy age‐matched controls using phase imaging.

Materials and Methods

Twenty‐six AD patients and 24 healthy controls were recruited. A three‐dimensional high‐resolution, gradient‐echo sequence was used to acquire phase data in the coronal plane. A high‐pass filter was used to remove the phase variation caused by field inhomogeneity. The regions evaluated included the bilateral putamen, globus pallidus, and the head and body of the hippocampus.

Results

Significantly lower phase values in both the basal ganglion and hippocampus were revealed in the AD group compared to the normal controls (P < 0.05). The phase value in the right side of the head of the hippocampus had a moderate positive correlation with the MMSE score (r= 0.603, P = 0.000) and a negative correlation with the duration of the disease (r = ?0.677, P = 0.013). Using ?0.0972 radians as an optimal cutoff value, the sensitivity and specificity for differentiation between AD and normal controls reached 95.8 and 80.8%, respectively.

Conclusion

Phase imaging proved to be a useful method for the differentiation between normal controls and AD patients. An investigation of the excessive accumulation of iron in the hippocampus may help us better understand the pathologic process and neuropsychological dysfunction of AD disease. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2009;29:793–798. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

     

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy in vivo of neurochemicals in a transgenic model of Alzheimer's disease: A longitudinal study of metabolites,relaxation time,and behavioral analysis in TASTPM and wild‐type mice

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the elderly. Due to ongoing advances in our understanding of the underlying pathology of AD, many potential new targets for therapeutics are becoming available. Transgenic mouse models of AD have helped in furthering our understanding of AD and also provide a vehicle for preclinical testing of new, putative disease‐modifying therapeutics, which may have potential for translation to use in clinical trials. To identify possible translational biomarkers, we have studied the longitudinal cerebral metabolic pattern of the TASTPM transgenic AD mouse, a double transgenic mouse overexpressing human mutant amyloid precursor protein (hAPP695swe) and presenilin‐1 (M146V) by ¹H magnetic resonance spectroscopy, along with concurrent brain T₁/T₂ mapping and behavioral testing. We found significant differences in creatine, glutamate, N‐acetylaspartate, choline‐containing compounds, and myo‐inositol between TASTPM and wild‐type mice. In the case of N‐acetylaspartate and myo‐inositol, there were similarities to differences detected in human AD. T₁/T₂ values were shorter overall in TASTPM mice, indicating possible differences in water content between TASTPM and wild‐type mice. In older TASTPM mice, exploratory behavior became more random, indicating a possible memory deficiency. The decrease in behavioral performance correlated in the transgenic group with higher expression of myo‐inositol. Magn Reson Med 69:944–955, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Correlation of proton transverse relaxation rates (R2) with iron concentrations in postmortem brain tissue from alzheimer's disease patients

Iron accumulates in the Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain and is directly associated with β‐amyloid pathology. The proton transverse relaxation rate (R₂) has a strong linear relationship with iron concentrations in healthy brain tissue; however, an independent test of this relationship has not been extended to AD brain tissue. In this study in vitro single spin‐echo (SE) measurements were made on tissue samples from four human AD brains using a 4.7T MRI research scanner. R₂ values were calculated for 14 cortical and subcortical gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) regions. Atomic absorption spectroscopy was used to measure iron concentrations in the corresponding excised brain regions. Significant positive linear correlations were observed between R₂ values and iron concentrations in GM regions assessed across individual tissue samples and data averaged by brain region. With the use of a predictive model for R₂, a threshold iron concentration of 55 μg Fe/g wet tissue was determined above which R₂ appears to be dominated by the affects of iron in AD brain tissue. High‐field MRI may therefore be a useful research tool for assessing brain iron changes associated with AD. Magn Reson Med 57:172–180, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

1H MR spectroscopy using TE averaged PRESS: a more sensitive technique to detect neurodegeneration associated with Alzheimer's disease.

A sensitive proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)H MRS) acquisition scheme that is capable of discriminating between normal controls and a group of patients with early Alzheimer's disease (AD) is presented. The performance of this newly developed method, TE averaged PRESS (PRESS-J), in detecting neurodegeneration associated with early AD is compared with that of short echo time (TE) PRESS. A stepwise discriminant function analysis is used to construct discriminant functions for both pulse sequences. These functions are each composed of a single predictor: the N-acetyl aspartate (NAA)/creatine (Cr) ratio for PRESS-J, and the NAA/myoInositol (mI) ratio for PRESS. We observed lower P-values, higher areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves, and higher sensitivity at a given specificity for the PRESS-J discriminating function in comparison with the PRESS discriminating function. The higher sensitivity of PRESS-J is due to decreased variability when the singlets are fit in the spectra. This increased sensitivity enables new MR applications and, among other benefits, allows for smaller group sizes in drug trials, which can significantly reduce the cost of such trials.     

2-(2-[2-Dimethylaminothiazol-5-yl]ethenyl)-6- (2-[fluoro]ethoxy)benzoxazole: a novel PET agent for in vivo detection of dense amyloid plaques in Alzheimer's disease patients.

Extensive deposition of dense amyloid fibrils is a characteristic neuropathologic hallmark in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Noninvasive detection of these molecules is potentially useful for early and precise detection of patients with AD. This study reports a novel compound, 2-(2-[2-dimethylaminothiazol-5-yl]ethenyl)-6-(2-[fluoro]ethoxy)benzoxazole (BF-227), for in vivo detection of dense amyloid deposits using PET. METHODS: The binding affinity of BF-227 to amyloid-beta (Abeta) fibrils was calculated. The binding property of BF-227 to amyloid plaques was evaluated by neuropathologic staining of AD brain sections. Brain uptake and in vivo binding of BF-227 to Abeta deposits were also evaluated using mice. For clinical evaluation of (11)C-BF-227 as a PET probe, 11 normal (healthy) subjects and 10 patients with AD participated in this study. Dynamic PET images were obtained for 60 min after administration of (11)C-BF-227. The regional standardized uptake value (SUV) and the ratio of regional to cerebellar SUV were calculated as an index of (11)C-BF-227 retention. The regional tracer distribution in AD patients was statistically compared with that of aged normal subjects on a voxel-by-voxel basis. RESULTS: BF-227 displayed high binding affinity to synthetic Abeta1-42 fibrils (K(i) [inhibition constant], 4.3 +/- 1.5 nM). Neuropathologic staining has demonstrated preferential binding of this agent to dense amyloid deposits in AD brain. Moreover, a biodistribution study of this agent revealed excellent brain uptake and specific labeling of amyloid deposits in transgenic mice. The present clinical PET study using (11)C-BF-227 demonstrated the retention of this tracer in cerebral cortices of AD patients but not in those of normal subjects. All AD patients were clearly distinguishable from normal individuals using the temporal SUV ratio. Voxel-by-voxel analysis of PET images revealed that cortical BF-227 retention in AD patients is distributed primarily to the posterior association area of the brain and corresponded well with the preferred site for neuritic plaque depositions containing dense Abeta fibrils. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that BF-227 is a promising PET probe for in vivo detection of dense amyloid deposits in AD patients.