Zwan M D, Okamura N, Fodero-Tavoletti M T, Furumoto S, Masters C L, Rowe C C, Villemagne V L
Department of Nuclear Medicine and Centre for PET Austin Health, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia -
Q J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2014 Dec;58(4):398-412. Epub 2014 Oct 31.
The last decade has witnessed the development and characterization of tracers for the evaluation of neuropathology in vivo. The introduction of these tracers, namely β-amyloid (Aβ) and later tau, are providing the tools to change the landscape and refine our understanding of Aβ and tau deposition in the brain, allowing to investigate the causes, refine diagnosis and improve treatment of major neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD). Aβ and tau imaging allow examination of the regional and global changes of these disease markers over time as well as their relationship with other relevant parameters such as cognitive performance and neurodegenerative changes. Aβ and tau imaging will enable to establish the role Aβ and tau play -and interplay- in aging and disease. Aβ and tau imaging value resides in being not only diagnostic, prognostic or progression markers, but also surrogate markers of disease, crucial for patient recruitment and efficacy evaluation of disease-specific therapies.
过去十年见证了用于体内神经病理学评估的示踪剂的发展与特性研究。这些示踪剂的引入，即β-淀粉样蛋白（Aβ）以及后来的tau蛋白，正在提供工具来改变局面并深化我们对大脑中Aβ和tau蛋白沉积的理解，从而能够研究诸如阿尔茨海默病（AD）、慢性创伤性脑病（CTE）和额颞叶变性（FTLD）等主要神经退行性疾病的病因、完善诊断并改善治疗。Aβ和tau蛋白成像能够检测这些疾病标志物随时间的区域和整体变化，以及它们与其他相关参数（如认知表现和神经退行性变化）的关系。Aβ和tau蛋白成像将有助于确定Aβ和tau蛋白在衰老和疾病中所起的作用以及它们之间的相互作用。Aβ和tau蛋白成像的价值不仅在于它是诊断、预后或病情进展的标志物，还在于它是疾病的替代标志物，对于患者招募和疾病特异性疗法的疗效评估至关重要。
