AUTHOR=Lin Wei-Che , Chen Hsiu-Ling , Hsu Tun-Wei , Hsu Chien-Chin , Huang Yung-Cheng , Tsai Nai-Wen , Lu Cheng-Hsien 

TITLE=Correlation between Dopamine Transporter Degradation and Striatocortical Network Alteration in Parkinson’s Disease

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 8 - 2017

YEAR=2017

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2017.00323

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2017.00323

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=The association between dopamine neuron loss and functional change in the striatocortical network was analyzed in 31 patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) (mean disease duration 4.03 ± 4.20 years; Hoehn and Yahr [HY] stage 2.2 ± 1.2) and 37 age-matched normal control subjects. We performed 99mTc-TRODAT-1 SPECT/CT imaging to detect neuron losses and resting–state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) to detect functional changes. Mean striatal dopamine transporter binding ratios were determined by region of interest analysis. The functional connectivity correlation coefficient (fc-cc) was determined in six striatal subregions, and interactions between these binding ratios and the striatocortical fc-cc values were analyzed. The PD patients had significant functional network alterations in all striatal subregions. Lower striatal dopamine transporter binding correlated significantly with lower fc-cc values in the superior medial frontal lobe and superior frontal lobe and higher fc-cc values in the cerebellum and parahippocampus.  The difference in fc-cc between the ventral inferior striatum and superior medial frontal lobe was significantly correlated with increased disease duration (r=–0.533, P=0.004), higher HY stage (r=–0.431, P=0.020), and lower activities of daily living score (r=0.369, p=0.049). The correlation of fronto-striatal network changes with clinical manifestations suggests that fc-cc may serve as a surrogate marker of disease progression.