Increased iron in the substantia nigra pars compacta identifies patients with early Parkinson'sdisease: A 3T and 7T MRI study.

ABSTRACT: Degeneration in the substantia nigra (SN) pars compacta (SNc) underlies motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease (PD). Currently, there are no neuroimaging biomarkers that are sufficiently sensitive, specific, reproducible, and accessible for routine diagnosis or staging of PD. Although iron is essential for cellular processes, it also mediates neurodegeneration. MRI can localize and quantify brain iron using magnetic susceptibility, which could potentially provide biomarkers of PD. We measured iron in the SNc, SN pars reticulata (SNr), total SN, and ventral tegmental area (VTA), using quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) and R2* relaxometry, in PD patients and age-matched healthy controls (HCs). PD patients, diagnosed within five years of participation and HCs were scanned at 3T (22 PD

SUBMITTER: Alushaj E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10944193 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature