BIOMARKERS IN EARLY ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE

本子项目是利用由NIH/NCRR资助的中心赠款提供的资源的众多研究子项目之一。子项目和研究者（PI）可能已经从另一个NIH来源获得了主要资金，因此可以在其他CRISP条目中表示。列出的机构是中心的，不一定是研究者的机构。开发一种针对阿尔茨海默病（AD）的非侵入性检测方法是非常可取的。本研究的目的是利用MRI和CSF生物标志物来识别正常受试者中最早临床检测到的AD变化。假设脑脊液P-tau水平将提高萎缩MRI测量和脑脊液淀粉样蛋白测量的准确性，作为认知障碍下降的预测指标。这项研究的基础是观察到在一些正常和轻度认知受损的个体中，可以看到内嗅皮层的神经元和体积损失与神经原纤维缠结有关。影像学研究缺乏特异性，但研究人员认为，在轻度认知受损个体的脑脊液中，缠结相关的异常tau蛋白（P-tau 231）升高，预示着衰退，并且是AD特异性的。这是一项为期3年的纵向MRI和脑脊液研究（3次评估），研究对象是80名老年正常受试者（50名有记忆问题），他们已经参加了另一项研究。MRI测量海马的大小。腰椎穿刺检测tau蛋白和β淀粉样蛋白。标准化的神经心理学数据也将被收集。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. It would be highly desirable to develop a non-invasive test for Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of this study is to use MRI and CSF biomarkers to identify in normal subjects the earliest clinically detected changes of AD. The hypothesis is that CSF P-tau levels will improve accuracy of MRI measurements of atrophy and CSF amyloid-beta measurements as a predictor of decline to cognitive impairment. The study is based on the observation that in some normal and minimally cognitively impaired individuals, neuronal and volume loss in the entorhinal cortex can be seen in association with neurofibrillary tangles. Imaging studies lack specificity, but the investigators suggest that tangle-related abnormal tau proteins (P-tau 231) are elevated in the CSF of minimally cognitively impaired individuals, predicting decline, and are specific for AD. This is a longitudinal MRI and CSF study over 3 years (3 evaluations) on 80 elderly normal subjects (50 with memory complaints) already enrolled in another study. MRI will be performed to measure hippocampus size. Lumbar puncture will be done to measure tau and amyloid-beta proteins. Standardized neuropsychological data will also be collected.