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Abstract #1688

Diffusion and multi-echo ASL reveal lower blood-brain interface water permeability in mild cognitive impairment and early Alzheimer’s disease

Tabitha J Manson1,2, Xingfeng Shao3, Danny JJ Wang3, Matthias Günther4,5, Lynette Tippett2,6,7, Michael Dragunow2,7,8, David L Thomas9,10, Vinod Suresh1,11, and Catherine Morgan2,6,7
1Auckland Bioengineering Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, 2Brain Research New Zealand, Auckland, New Zealand, 3Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States, 4Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS, Bremen, Germany, 5Faculty 01 (Physics/Electrical Engineering), University Bremen, Bremen, Germany, 6School of Psychology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, 7Centre for Brain Research, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, 8Department of Pharmacology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, 9Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom, 10Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, UK, London, United Kingdom, 11Department of Engineering Science, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

Blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction has been found in multiple neurodegenerative conditions, including mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However recent concerns on the repeated use of Gadolinium based contrast agents (GBCAs), prompted us to investigate alternative, non-invasive methods for measuring BBB function. Both diffusion-weighted (DW) and multi-echo (ME) ASL was implemented at 3T to determine water transfer rates (kw) in the brain in MCI and early AD participants. We found kw to be lower in the cognitively impaired group, compared to controls, with both modalities, suggesting that these techniques may provide a marker of early AD pathology.

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