Top

Published in:

01-08-2010 | Diagnostic Neuroradiology

Diffusion tensor tract-specific analysis of the uncinate fasciculus in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Authors: Kanako Sato, Shigeki Aoki, Nobue K. Iwata, Yoshitaka Masutani, Takeyuki Watadani, Yasuhiro Nakata, Mariko Yoshida, Yasuo Terao, Osamu Abe, Kuni Ohtomo, Shoji Tsuji

Published in: Neuroradiology | Issue 8/2010

Abstract

Introduction

The uncinate fasciculus (UF) consists of core fibers connecting the frontal and temporal lobes and is considered to be related to cognitive/behavioral function. Using diffusion tensor tractography, we quantitatively evaluated changes in fractional anisotropy (FA) and the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) of the UF by tract-specific analysis to evaluate the damage of the UF in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Methods

We obtained diffusion tensor images of 15 patients with ALS and 9 age-matched volunteers.

Results

Patients with ALS showed significantly lower mean FA (P = 0.029) compared with controls. No significant difference was seen in mean ADC.

Conclusion

The results suggest that damage of the UF in patients with ALS can be quantitatively evaluated with FA.

Strong MJ, Grace GM, Freedman M, Lomen-Hoerth C, Woolley S, Goldstein LH et al (2009) Consensus criteria for the diagnosis of frontotemporal cognitive and behavioural syndromes in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotroph Lateral Scler 10(3):131–146CrossRefPubMed

Ringholz GM, Appel SH, Bradshaw M, Cooke NA, Mosnik DM, Schulz PE (2005) Prevalence and patterns of cognitive impairment in sporadic ALS. Neurology 65:586–590CrossRefPubMed

Phukan J, Pender NP, Hardiman O (2007) Cognitive impairment in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Lancet Neurol 6:994–1003CrossRefPubMed

Gibbons ZC, Richardson A, Neary D, Snowden JS (2008) Behaviour in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotroph Lateral Scler 9:67–74CrossRefPubMed

Sarac H, Zagar M, Vranjes D, Henigsberg N, Billic E, Pavlisa G (2008) Magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy in a patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia. Coll Antropol 32(Supple 1):205–210PubMed

Ishikawa T, Morita M, Nakano I (2007) Brain perfusion imaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with dementia. Brain Nerve 59:1093–1098, JapanesePubMed

Yasmin H, Nakata Y, Aoki S, Abe O, Sato N, Nemoto K et al (2008) Diffusion abnormalities of the uncinate fasciculus in Alzheimer's disease: diffusion tensor tract-specific analysis using a new method to measure the core of the tract. Neuroradiology 50:293–299CrossRefPubMed

Taoka T, Iwasaki S, Sakamoto M, Nakagawa H, Fukusumi A, Myochin K et al (2006) Diffusion anisotropy and diffusivity of white matter tracts within the temporal stem in Alzheimer disease: evaluation of the “tract of interest” by diffusion tensor tractography. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 27:1040–1045PubMed

Price G, Cercignani M, Parker GJM, Altmann DR, Barnes TRE, Barker GJ et al (2008) White matter tracts in first-episode psychosis: a DTI tractography study of the uncinate fasciculus. NeuroImage 39:949–955CrossRefPubMed

10.

Iwata NK, Aoki S, Okabe S, Arai N, Terao Y, Kwak S et al (2008) Evaluation of corticospinal tracts in ALS with diffusion tensor MRI and brainstem stimulation. Neurology 70:528–532CrossRefPubMed

11.

Aoki S, Iwata NK, Masutani Y, Yoshida M, Abe O, Ugawa Y et al (2005) Quantitative evaluation of the pyramidal tract segment by diffusion tensor tractography: feasibility study in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Radiat Med 23:195–199PubMed

12.

Abe O, Yamada H, Masutani Y, Aoki S, Kunimatsu A, Yamasue H et al (2004) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: diffusion tensor tractography and voxel-based analysis. NMR Biomed 17:411–416CrossRefPubMed

13.

Ellis CM, Simmons A, Jones DK, Bland J, Dawson JM, Horsfield MA et al (1999) Diffusion tensor MRI assesses corticospinal tract damage in ALS. Neurology 53:1051–1058PubMed

14.

Senda J, Ito M, Watanabe H, Atsuya N, Kawai Y, Katsuno M et al (2009) Correlation between pyramidal tract degeneration and widespread white matter involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a study with tractography and diffusion-tensor imaging. Amyotroph Lateral Scler 29:1–8CrossRef

15.

Sach M, Winkler G, Glauche V, Liepert J, Heimbach B, Koch MA et al (2004) Diffusion tensor MRI of early upper motor neuron involvement in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Brain 127:340–350CrossRefPubMed

16.

Mori H, Yagishita A, Takeda T, Mizutani T (2007) Symmetric temporal abnormalities on MR imaging in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with dementia. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 28:1511–1516CrossRefPubMed

17.

Yoshida M (2004) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with dementia: the clinicopathological spectrum. Neuropathology 24:87–102CrossRefPubMed

18.

Lu LH, Crosson B, Nadeau SE, Heilman KM, Gonzalez-Rothi LJ, Raymer A et al (2002) Category-specific naming deficits for objects and actions: semantic attribute and grammatical role hypotheses. Neuropsychologia 40:1608–1621CrossRefPubMed

19.

Diehl B, Busch RM, Duncan JS, Piao Z, Tkach J, Luders HO (2008) Abnormalities in diffusion tensor imaging of the uncinate fasciculus relate to reduced memory in temporal lobe epilepsy. Epilepsia 49:1409–1418CrossRefPubMed

20.

Abrahams S, Goldstein LH, Simmons A, Brammer M, Williams SCR, Giampietro V et al (2004) Word retrieval in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Brain 127:1507–1517CrossRefPubMed

21.

Matsuo K, Mizuno T, Yamada K, Akazawa K, Kasai T, Kondo M et al (2008) Cerebral white matter damage in frontotemporal dementia assessed by diffusion tensor tractography. Neuroradiology 50:605–611CrossRefPubMed

22.

Books BR, Miller RG, Swash M, Munsat TL (2000) El Escorial revisited: revised criteria for the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Other Motor Neuron Disord 1:293–299CrossRef

23.

Masutani Y, Aoki S, Abe O, Hayashi N, Otomo K (2003) MR diffusion tensor imaging: recent advance and new techniques for diffusion tensor visualization. Eur J Radiol 46:53–66CrossRefPubMed

24.

Oouchi H, Yamada K, Sakai K, Kizu O, Kubota T, Ito H et al (2007) Diffusion anisotropy measurement of brain white matter is affected by voxel size: underestimation occurs in areas with crossing fibers. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 28:1102–1106CrossRefPubMed

25.

Wang F, Sun T, Li XG, Liu NJ (2008) Diffusion tensor tractography of the temporal stem on the inferior limiting sulcus. Laboratory investigation. J Neurosurg 108:775–781CrossRefPubMed

26.

Levine B, Black SE, Cabeza R, Sinden M, Mcintosh AR, Toth JP et al (1998) Episodic memory and the self in a case of isolated retrograde amnesia. Brain 121:1951–1973CrossRefPubMed

27.

Nestor PG, Kubicki M, Gurrera RJ, Sinden M, Mcintosh AR, Toth JP et al (2004) Neuropsychological correlates of diffusion tensor imaging in schizophrenia. Neuropsychology 18:629–637CrossRefPubMed

28.

Kier EL, Staib LH, Davis LM, Bronen RA (2004) MR imaging of the temporal stem: anatomic dissection tractography of the uncinate fasciculus, inferior occipitofrontal fasciculus, and Meyer’s loop of the optic radiation. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 25:677–691PubMed

29.

Snowden JS, Bathgate D, Varma A, Blackshaw A, Gibbons ZC, Neary D (2001) Distinct behavioural profiles in frontotemporal dementia and semantic dementia. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 70:323–332CrossRefPubMed

30.

Rakowicz WP, Hodges JR (1998) Dementia and aphasia in motor neuron disease: an underrecognised association? J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 65:881–889CrossRefPubMed

31.

Heidler-Gary J, Hillis AE (2007) Distinctions between the dementia in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with frontotemporal dementia and the dementia of Alzheimer’s disease. Amyotroph Lateral Scler 8:276–282CrossRefPubMed

32.

Wang S, Melhem ER (2005) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis: the role of diffusion tensor imaging and other advanced MR-based techniques as objective upper motor neuron markers. Ann N Y Acad Sci 1064:61–77CrossRefPubMed

33.

Basser PJ, Pierpaoli C (1996) Microstructural and physiological features of tissues elucidated by quantitative-diffusion-tensor MRI. J Magn Reson B111:209–219

34.

Basser PJ, Mattiello J, LeBihan D (1994) MR diffusion tensor spectroscopy and imaging. Biophys J 66:259–267CrossRefPubMed

35.

Pierpaoli C, Jezzard P, Basser PJ, Barnett A, Di CG (1996) Diffusion tensor MR imaging of the human brain. Radiology 201:637–648PubMed

36.

Borroni R, Alberici A, Premi E, Archetti S, Garibotto V, Agosti C et al (2008) Brain magnetic resonance imaging structural changes in a pedigree of asymptomatic progranulin mutation carriers. Rejuvenation Res 11:585–595CrossRefPubMed

37.

Yu C, Li J, Liu Y, Qin W, Li Y, Shu N et al (2008) White matter tract integrity and intelligence in patients with mental retardation and healthy adults. NeuroImage 40:1533–1541CrossRefPubMed

Title: Diffusion tensor tract-specific analysis of the uncinate fasciculus in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Authors: Kanako Sato
Shigeki Aoki
Nobue K. Iwata
Yoshitaka Masutani
Takeyuki Watadani
Yasuhiro Nakata
Mariko Yoshida
Yasuo Terao
Osamu Abe
Kuni Ohtomo
Shoji Tsuji
Publication date: 01-08-2010
Publisher: Springer-Verlag
Published in: Neuroradiology / Issue 8/2010
Print ISSN: 0028-3940
Electronic ISSN: 1432-1920
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-010-0653-1

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Diffusion tensor tract-specific analysis of the uncinate fasciculus in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Abstract

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 8/2010

The regional distribution of T2-relaxation times in MR images of the substantia nigra and crus cerebri

Correlation of quantitative sensorimotor tractography with clinical grade of cerebral palsy

Optimum b value for resolving crossing fibers: a study with standard clinical b value using 1.5-T MR

Computational analysis of cerebral cortex

European Society of Neuroradiology (ESNR)

Assessment of damage to cerebral white matter fiber in the subacute phase after carbon monoxide poisoning using fractional anisotropy in diffusion tensor imaging