Hippocampal atrophy is a well-established imaging biomarker of Alzheimer disease (AD). However, hippocampus is a non-homogenous structure with cytoarchitecturally and functionally distinct sub-regions or subfield, with each region performing distinct functions. Certain regions of the subfield have shown selective vulnerability to AD. Here, we are interested in studying the effects of normal aging and mild cognitive impairment on these sub-regional volumes. With a reliable automated segmentation technique, we segmented these subregions of the hippocampus in 101 cognitively normal (CN), 135 early mild cognitive impairment (EMCI), 67 late mild cognitive impairment (LMCI) and 48 AD subjects. Thereby, dividing the hippocampus into hippocampal tail (tail), subiculum (SUB), cornu ammonis 1 (CA1), hippocampal fissure (fissure), presubiculum (PSUB), parasubiculum (ParaSUB), molecular layer (ML), granule cells/molecular layer/ dentate gyrus (GCMLDG), cornu ammonis 3(CA3), cornu ammonis 4(CA4), fimbria and hippocampal-amygdala transition area (HATA). In this cross sectional study of 351 ADNI subjects, no differences in terms of age, gender, and years of education were observed among the groups. Though, the groups had statistically significant differences (p < 0.05 after the multiple comparison correction) in the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores. There was asymmetrical volume loss in the early stages of AD with the left hemisphere showing volume loss in regions that were unaffected in the right hemisphere. Bilateral parasubiculum, right cornu ammonis 1, 3 and 4, right fimbria and right HATA regions did not show any volume loss till the late MCI stages. Our findings suggest that the hippocampal subfield regions are selectively vulnerable to AD and also that these vulnerabilities are asymmetrical especially during the early stages of AD.
조선대학교 기초과학연구원 [The Natural Science Research Institute of Chosun]
설립연도
2008
분야
자연과학>자연과학일반
소개
본 연구원은 기초과학을 진흥하기 위한 연구·교육 및 그 보급을 목적으로 한다. 이 목적을 달성하기 위하여 다음 각 호의 사업을 수행한다.
1. 기초과학 제 분야에 관한 조사와 연구
2. 기초과학에 관한 학술행사(학술대회, 학술세미나, 심포지엄, 초청강연회 등) 개최
3. 학문후속세대 및 일반인을 위한 기초과학 교육
4. 기관지『조선자연과학논문지』 발간
5. 『자연과학연구총서』, 『자연과학번역총서』 등 단행본 발간
6. 기타 본 연구원의 목적과 관련된 사업
간행물
간행물명
통합자연과학논문집(구 조선자연과학논문집) [Journal of Integrative Natural Science]