Expert brain imaging could unlock the mysteries of Alzheimer’s disease and other health problems, Canadian researchers believe.
Neuromelanin-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging, a method of high-resolution imaging, could possibly be used for large-scale screening for Alzheimer’s.
It can also provide information on the early stages of the disease, decades before the first symptoms appear.
In the depths of the brain
This method, explained Dr. Clifford Cassidy, of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, makes it possible to see the groups of cells that hide in the depths of the brain.
With this new imagery, we can find them, we can observe and we can see if they have been damaged.he summarized.
The researchers found a direct link between damage to these cells, called neuromodulators, the severity of Alzheimer’s disease and certain symptoms such as aggression and anxiety that can be extremely problematic, Drs. Cassidy.
These structures may also be the first to be affected by the disease, several years before the first manifestations become apparent.
” If we can examine these parts of the brain at the very beginning (of the disease) using this method, we can hope to determine who is most at risk, and perhaps at that time an intervention will be more effective. “
Doctors have drugs at their disposal that act on these neuromodulators. However, not all patients respond to it in the same way and some may experience significant side effects.
The imaging technique can help determine in advance which patients are most likely to benefit from these drugs, Dr. Cassidy hopes, consistent with the approach of personalized medicine which gets a lot of attention.
Useful for schizophrenia, ADHD and bipolar disorder
Neuromelanin-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging may also be useful in conditions such as schizophrenia, ADHD and bipolar disorder, he added.
In some patients, even these neuromodulators seem intact, the signal these discharges have changed, and are associated with certain symptoms or psychiatric disorders.
The findings of this study were published in a medical journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
Source: Radio-Canada
