A total of 40 Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients and 40 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HC) were scanned using a single 3D gradient echo magnetization transfer sequence to measure neuromelanin and iron content, and the overlap between them. These measures showed reliable results indicative of powerful diagnostic biomarkers to differentiate PD patients from HCs. An increase in iron content was seen in the substantia nigra for the PD patients while the neuromelanin volume decreased. The best predictor, however, was found to be the combination of neuromelanin volume and its overlap with iron-containing substantia nigra which yielded an AUC of 98%.
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