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[18F]F-DED PET imaging of reactive astrogliosis in neurodegenerative diseases: preclinical proof of concept and first-in-human data
Ballweg A, Klaus C, Vogler L, Katzdobler S, Wind K, Zatcepin A, Ziegler SI, Secgin B et al.. Journal of neuroinflammation, 2023-03-11
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Results We selected the cerebellum as a pseudo-reference region based on the immunohistochemical comparison of age-matched PS2APP and WT mice. Subsequent PET imaging revealed that PS2APP mice showed elevated hippocampal and thalamic [ 18 F]F-DED DVR when compared to age-matched WT mice at 5 months (thalamus: + 4.3%; p = 0.048), 13 months (hippocampus: + 7.6%, p = 0.022) and 19 months (hippocampus: + 12.3%, p 18 F]F-DED DVR increases of PS2APP mice occurred earlier when compared to signal alterations in TSPO and β-amyloid PET and [ 18 F]F-DED DVR correlated with quantitative immunohistochemistry (hippocampus: R = 0.720, p 18 F]F-DED V T and SUVr patterns, matching the expected topology of reactive astrogliosis in neurodegenerative (MSA) and neuroinflammatory conditions, whereas the patient with oligodendroglioma and the healthy control indicated [ 18 F]F-DED binding following the known physiological MAO-B expression in brain.
Key findings
- Results We selected the cerebellum as a pseudo-reference region based on the immunohistochemical comparison of age-matched PS2APP and WT mice.
- Subsequent PET imaging revealed that PS2APP mice showed elevated hippocampal and thalamic [ 18 F]F-DED DVR when compared to age-matched WT mice at 5 months (thalamus: + 4.3%; p = 0.048), 13 months (hippocampus: + 7.6%, p = 0.022) and 19 months (hippocampus: + 12.3%, p < 0.0001; thalamus: + 15.2%, p < 0.0001).
Why it matters
In a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease, a PET tracer for reactive astrogliosis showed increased signal in the hippocampus and thalamus before changes in TSPO and amyloid PET, and first-in-human scans matched expected patterns in neurodegenerative conditions. This is early preclinical and first-in-human work, so it does not yet show a benefit for diagnosing or treating Alzheimer's disease in patients.
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Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Effect size4.3%; 7.6%; 12.3%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 56/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of neuroinflammation) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Neuroinflammation: journal h-index 216 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 4 / 12 | A snapshot of people at one point in 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 | 3 / 5 | 2023 — within 6 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 | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| 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 | 4 / 7 | Cited 55 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 11.0 citations a year over 5 year(s) since 2023 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 51 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Matthias Brendel: h-index 56 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Imperial College London: institution h-index 1,744 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 9 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 36906584) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 56 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
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
Ballweg, A., Klaus, C., Vogler, L., Katzdobler, S., Wind, K., Zatcepin, A., et al. (2023). [18F]F-DED PET imaging of reactive astrogliosis in neurodegenerative diseases: preclinical proof of concept and first-in-human data. Journal of neuroinflammation. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12974-023-02749-2
Vancouver
Ballweg A, Klaus C, Vogler L, Katzdobler S, Wind K, Zatcepin A, et al. [18F]F-DED PET imaging of reactive astrogliosis in neurodegenerative diseases: preclinical proof of concept and first-in-human data. Journal of neuroinflammation. 2023. doi:10.1186/s12974-023-02749-2. PMID: 36906584.
BibTeX
@article{ballweg2023-36906584,
author = {Ballweg, A. and Klaus, C. and Vogler, L. and Katzdobler, S. and Wind, K. and Zatcepin, A. and Ziegler, S. I. and Secgin, B. and others},
title = {{[18F]F-DED PET imaging of reactive astrogliosis in neurodegenerative diseases: preclinical proof of concept and first-in-human data}},
journal = {Journal of neuroinflammation},
year = {2023},
doi = {10.1186/s12974-023-02749-2},
pmid = {36906584},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s12974-023-02749-2}
}
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