Brain Scan May Spot Alzheimer's Progression

Newly developed brain-scanning technology may help identify how Alzheimer's disease progresses and who is likely to get the disease, two new studies suggest.

"Our goal is to identify biomarkers, to be able to diagnose people early in the disease stage, hopefully, even before cognitive symptoms start," said lead researcher Anne Fagan Niven, a research associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

In their study, the first of its kind in humans, Fagen and her colleagues studied 24 people, some diagnosed with very mild or mild Alzheimer's disease and others who were cognitively normal. Participants underwent a spinal tap to collect CSF and also had PIB/PET scans.

In the second study, researchers used a combination of PIB/PET scans and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis to find markers that can predict Alzheimer's disease.

"Our goal is to identify biomarkers, to be able to diagnose people early in the disease stage, hopefully, even before cognitive symptoms start," said lead researcher Anne Fagan Niven, a research associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

In their study, the first of its kind in humans, Fagen and her colleagues studied 24 people, some diagnosed with very mild or mild Alzheimer's disease and others who were cognitively normal. Participants underwent a spinal tap to collect CSF and also had PIB/PET scans.

Most people didn't have amyloid plaques in their brains, but some did, the St. Louis team found. "Of all the people who had positive PIB finding, every single one of them also had reduced levels of a peptide called amyloid beta 42 (A-beta 42) in their CSF," Fagan said. A-beta 42 is the principal ingredient of the brain plaques.

"To our surprise, three of the people that were PIB-positive and had low A-beta 42 levels were clinically normal," Fagan said.

•	Brain Scan May Spot Alzheimer's Progression In the future, new technologies could identify who's at risk, researchers say ABC News, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2005 Byline: Steven Reinberg, HealthDay Reporter

•	New test may detect Alzheimer's before it shows St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2005 Byline: Tina Hesman

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