Imaging beta-amyloid burden in aging and dementia
Rowe CC, Ng S, Ackermann U, Gong SJ, Pike K, Savage G, Cowie TF, Dickinson KL et al.. Neurology, 2007-05-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Objective To compare brain beta-amyloid (Abeta) burden measured with [(11)C]Pittsburgh Compound B (PIB) PET in normal aging, Alzheimer disease (AD), and other dementias. Methods Thirty-three subjects with dementia (17 AD, 10 dementia with Lewy bodies [DLB], 6 frontotemporal dementia [FTD]), 9 subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 27 age-matched healthy control subjects (HCs) were studied. Abeta burden was quantified using PIB distribution volume ratio. Results Cortical PIB binding was markedly elevated in every AD subject regardless of disease severity, generally lower and more variable in DLB, and absent in FTD, whereas subjects with MCI presented either an "AD-like" (60%) or normal pattern. Binding was greatest in the precuneus/posterior cingulate, frontal cortex, and caudate nuclei, followed by lateral temporal and parietal cortex. Six HCs (22%) showed cortical uptake despite normal neuropsychological scores. PIB binding did not correlate with dementia severity in AD or DLB but was higher in subjects with an APOE-epsilon4 allele. In DLB, binding correlated inversely with the interval from onset of cognitive impairment to diagnosis. Conclusions Pittsburgh Compound B PET findings match histopathologic reports of beta-amyloid (Abeta) distribution in aging and dementia. Noninvasive longitudinal studies to better understand the role of amyloid deposition in the course of neurodegeneration and to determine if Abeta deposition in nondemented subjects is preclinical AD are now feasible. Our findings also suggest that Abeta may influence the development of dementia with Lewy bodies, and therefore strategies to reduce Abeta may benefit this condition.
Key findings
- Results Cortical PIB binding was markedly elevated in every AD subject regardless of disease severity, generally lower and more variable in DLB, and absent in FTD, whereas subjects with MCI presented either an "AD-like" (60%) or normal pattern.
- Our findings also suggest that Abeta may influence the development of dementia with Lewy bodies, and therefore strategies to reduce Abeta may benefit this condition.
Why it matters
Using PET imaging, this study found that amyloid burden was elevated in every person with Alzheimer's disease, lower and more variable in dementia with Lewy bodies, absent in frontotemporal dementia, and present in some people with mild cognitive impairment and even some healthy controls. It shows that amyloid imaging can reveal brain changes, but it does not provide a treatment, cure or prevention.
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Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 66/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A longitudinal study following the same people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2007 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,107 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 52.7 citations a year over 21 year(s) since 2007 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 60.8× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 96 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 34 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Victor L. Villemagne: h-index 110 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | The University of Melbourne: institution h-index 1,342 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 17502554) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 66 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
May need a subscription Unpaywall, Europe PMC and OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 10 Oct 2026), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Rowe, C. C., Ng, S., Ackermann, U., Gong, S. J., Pike, K., Savage, G., et al. (2007). Imaging beta-amyloid burden in aging and dementia. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/01.wnl.0000261919.22630.ea
Vancouver
Rowe CC, Ng S, Ackermann U, Gong SJ, Pike K, Savage G, et al. Imaging beta-amyloid burden in aging and dementia. Neurology. 2007. doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000261919.22630.ea. PMID: 17502554.
BibTeX
@article{rowe2007-17502554,
author = {Rowe, C. C. and Ng, S. and Ackermann, U. and Gong, S. J. and Pike, K. and Savage, G. and Cowie, T. F. and Dickinson, K. L. and others},
title = {{Imaging beta-amyloid burden in aging and dementia}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2007},
doi = {10.1212/01.wnl.0000261919.22630.ea},
pmid = {17502554},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/01.wnl.0000261919.22630.ea}
}
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