Guo Zixuan, Jiang Yanchun, Qin Xiaoyan, Mu Ronghua, Meng Zhuoni, Zhuang Zeyu, Liu Fuzhen, Zhu Xiqi
Department of Medical Imaging, Guilin Medical University, Guilin, China.
Department of Medical Imaging, Nanxishan Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guilin, China.
Front Neurol. 2021 Oct 12;12:707030. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2021.707030. eCollection 2021.
To evaluate whether 3D amide proton transfer weighted (APTw) imaging based on magnetization transfer analysis can be used as a novel imaging marker to distinguish amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) patients from the normal elderly population by measuring changes in APTw signal intensity in the hippocampus and amygdala. Seventy patients with aMCI and 74 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers were recruited for routine MRI and APT imaging examinations. Magnetic transfer ratio asymmetry (MTRasym) of the amide protons (at 3.5 ppm), or APTw values, were measured in the bilateral hippocampus and amygdala on three consecutive cross-sectional APT images and were compared between the aMCI and control groups. The independent sample t-test was used to evaluate the difference in APTw values of the bilateral hippocampus and amygdala between the aMCI and control groups. Receiver operator characteristic analysis was used to assess the diagnostic performance of the APTw. The paired t-test was used to assess the difference in APTw values between the left and right hippocampus and amygdala, in both the aMCI and control groups. The APTw values of the bilateral hippocampus and amygdala in the aMCI group were significantly higher than those in the control group (left hippocampus 1.01 vs. 0.77% < 0.001; right hippocampus 1.02 vs. 0.74%, < 0.001; left amygdala 0.98 vs. 0.70% < 0.001; right amygdala 0.94 vs. 0.71%, < 0.001). The APTw values of the left amygdala had the largest AUC (0.875) at diagnosis of aMCI. There was no significant difference in APTw values between the left and right hippocampus and amygdala, in either group. (aMCI group left hippocampus 1.01 vs. right hippocampus 1.02%, = 0.652; healthy control group left hippocampus 0.77 vs. right hippocampus 0.74%, = 0.314; aMCI group left amygdala 0.98 vs. right amygdala 0.94%, = 0.171; healthy control group left amygdala 0.70 vs. right amygdala 0.71%, = 0.726). APTw can be used as a new imaging marker to distinguish aMCI patients from the normal elderly population by indirectly reflecting the changes in protein content in the hippocampus and amygdala.
为了评估基于磁化传递分析的三维酰胺质子转移加权（APTw）成像是否可作为一种新型成像标志物，通过测量海马体和杏仁核中APTw信号强度的变化，来区分遗忘型轻度认知障碍（aMCI）患者与正常老年人群。招募了70例aMCI患者和74例年龄及性别匹配的健康志愿者进行常规MRI和APT成像检查。在连续三张横断面APT图像上测量双侧海马体和杏仁核中酰胺质子的磁转移率不对称性（MTRasym），即APTw值，并在aMCI组和对照组之间进行比较。采用独立样本t检验评估aMCI组和对照组双侧海马体和杏仁核APTw值的差异。采用受试者工作特征分析评估APTw的诊断性能。采用配对t检验评估aMCI组和对照组左右海马体及杏仁核之间APTw值的差异。aMCI组双侧海马体和杏仁核的APTw值显著高于对照组（左侧海马体1.01%对0.77%，<0.001；右侧海马体1.02%对0.74%，<0.001；左侧杏仁核0.98%对0.70%，<0.001；右侧杏仁核0.94%对0.71%，<0.001）。在诊断aMCI时，左侧杏仁核的APTw值具有最大的曲线下面积（AUC，0.875）。两组中左右海马体和杏仁核的APTw值均无显著差异。（aMCI组左侧海马体1.01%对右侧海马体1.02%，P = 0.652；健康对照组左侧海马体0.77%对右侧海马体0.74%，P = 0.314；aMCI组左侧杏仁核0.98%对右侧杏仁核0.94%，P = 0.171；健康对照组左侧杏仁核0.70%对右侧杏仁核0.71%，P = 0.726）。APTw可作为一种新的成像标志物，通过间接反映海马体和杏仁核中蛋白质含量的变化来区分aMCI患者与正常老年人群。
