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Tau-related white-matter alterations along spatially selective pathways
Wen Q, Risacher SL, Xie L, Li J, Harezlak J, Farlow MR, Unverzagt FW, Gao S et al.. NeuroImage, 2020-11-12
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Although AD is conventionally considered a disease of the gray matter, it is also associated with pronounced and progressive deterioration of the white matter (WM). A link between abnormal tau and WM degeneration is suggested by findings from both animal and postmortem studies, but few studies demonstrated their interplay in vivo. In this study, we explored the spatial pattern of tau-WM associations across the whole brain to evaluate the hypothesis that tau deposition is associated with WM microstructural alterations not only in isolated tracts, but in continuous structural connections in a stereotypic pattern. Without applying prior knowledge of the tau spread, we observed a distinct spatial pattern that resembled the typical propagation of tau pathology in AD. These findings suggest that cortical tau deposition (as measured in tau PET) is associated with a lower axonal packing density and greater diffusion freedom. In conclusion, our in vivo findings using a data-driven method on cross-sectional data underline the important role of WM alterations in the AD pathological cascade with an association pattern similar to the postmortem Braak staging of AD.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Wen, Q., Risacher, S. L., Xie, L., Li, J., Harezlak, J., Farlow, M. R., et al. (2021). Tau-related white-matter alterations along spatially selective pathways. NeuroImage. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117560
Vancouver
Wen Q, Risacher SL, Xie L, Li J, Harezlak J, Farlow MR, et al. Tau-related white-matter alterations along spatially selective pathways. NeuroImage. 2021. doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117560. PMID: 33189932.
BibTeX
@article{wen2021-33189932,
author = {Wen, Q. and Risacher, S. L. and Xie, L. and Li, J. and Harezlak, J. and Farlow, M. R. and Unverzagt, F. W. and Gao, S. and others},
title = {{Tau-related white-matter alterations along spatially selective pathways}},
journal = {NeuroImage},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117560},
pmid = {33189932},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117560}
}
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Key findings
- Although AD is conventionally considered a disease of the gray matter, it is also associated with pronounced and progressive deterioration of the white matter (WM).
- A link between abnormal tau and WM degeneration is suggested by findings from both animal and postmortem studies, but few studies demonstrated their interplay in vivo.
- In this study, we explored the spatial pattern of tau-WM associations across the whole brain to evaluate the hypothesis that tau deposition is associated with WM microstructural alterations not only in isolated tracts, but in continuous structural connections in a stereotypic pattern.
- Without applying prior knowledge of the tau spread, we observed a distinct spatial pattern that resembled the typical propagation of tau pathology in AD.
- These findings suggest that cortical tau deposition (as measured in tau PET) is associated with a lower axonal packing density and greater diffusion freedom.
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Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants22
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 60/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 35 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 60 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (NeuroImage) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| 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 | 2021 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 22 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 33189932) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 35 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 35 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 60 out of 100. |
| Total | 60 / 100 | — |
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