School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Australia.
Exercise Medicine Research Institute, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Australia.
J Musculoskelet Neuronal Interact. 2020 Sep 1;20(3):332-338.
Changes in body composition are a common feature of Huntington's disease (HD) and are associated with disease progression. However, whether these changes in body composition are associated with degeneration of the striatum is unknown. This study aimed to explore the associations between body composition metrics and striatal brain volume in individuals with premanifest HD and healthy controls.
Twenty-one individuals with premanifest HD and 22 healthy controls participated in this cross-sectional study. Body composition metrics were measured via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. Structural magnetic resonance imaging of subcortical structures of the brain was performed to evaluate striatal volume.
There were no significant differences in body composition metrics between the premanifest HD and healthy controls group. Striatal volume was significantly reduced in individuals with premanifest HD compared to healthy controls. A significant association between bone mineral density (BMD) and right putamen volume was also observed in individuals with premanifest HD.
These findings show striatal degeneration is evident during the premanifest stages of HD and associated with BMD. Additional longitudinal studies are nevertheless needed to confirm these findings.
身体成分的变化是亨廷顿病（HD）的一个常见特征，与疾病进展有关。然而，这些身体成分的变化是否与纹状体的退化有关尚不清楚。本研究旨在探讨纹状体脑体积与无症状 HD 个体和健康对照者身体成分指标之间的关系。
本横断面研究纳入了 21 名无症状 HD 个体和 22 名健康对照者。通过双能 X 射线吸收法测量身体成分指标。进行皮质下结构的结构磁共振成像以评估纹状体体积。
无症状 HD 组与健康对照组之间的身体成分指标无显著差异。与健康对照组相比，无症状 HD 个体的纹状体体积明显减小。无症状 HD 个体的骨密度（BMD）与右侧壳核体积之间也存在显著相关性。
这些发现表明纹状体退化在 HD 的无症状阶段就已经很明显，并且与 BMD 有关。然而，仍需要进行额外的纵向研究来证实这些发现。
