Cerebral white matter lesions - associations with A? isoforms and amyloid PET.

ABSTRACT: Small vessel disease (SVD) and amyloid deposition may promote each other, with a potential association between SVD and altered production or clearance of ?-amyloid (A?) affecting its cleavage products. We investigated the relationship between SVD, multiple isoforms of A? in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and cortical A? in 831 subjects with cognitive performance ranging from normal to Alzheimer's disease (AD) (the Swedish BioFINDER study). SVD was estimated as white matter lesions (WML) and lacunes. 18F-flutemetamol PET was performed in 321 subjects. Lower CSF levels of A?38 and A?40 were consistently associated with increased WML in all subgroups, while lower levels of CSF A?42 were associated with WML mainly in AD. CSF A?38 and A?40 were associated with regional WML in all regions, while CSF A?42 was associated with temporal WML only. A composite measure of 18F-flutemetamol uptake was not associated with WML, and regional 18F-flutemetamol uptake only with temporal WML. Lacunes were not associated with A? isoforms nor 18F-flutemetamol uptake. Our results suggest that WML may be associated with alterations in the production or clearance of A? species, particularly of A?38 and A?40. However, in AD cases, A?42 pathology might be associated with WML, especially in the temporal lobe.

SUBMITTER: van Westen D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4746584 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature