Susan Kraft1, Susan VandeWoude1, Dan Bucy1, Mark Brown2, Annette Bachand3, Lisbeth Sestina3, Helle Bielefeldt-Ohmann3, John Elder4
1Colorado State University, Fort Collins , CO, USA; 2Physics Consulting Services for MRI and MRS, Arvada, CO, USA; 3Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA; 4Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA
MR diffusion weighted imaging and MR spectroscopy were used 4 months post-inoculation to study the neuropathophysiology associated with feline immunodeficiency virus infection in cats inoculated with either a neurotropic viral strain (FIV-A-PPR) or an immunopathogenic strain (FIV-C-PG). No abnormalities were visualized on anatomic MRI scans and the MR spectroscopy findings did not differ between groups. However, apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) was significantly increased in multiple brain regions, which varied regionally by viral-strain, despite only subtle histopathologic changes and low brain proviral load. This is a characteristic also described in human HIV patients with neuroAIDS, making this a relevant animal model.