Characterizing regional correlation, laterality and symmetry of amyloid deposition in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease with Pittsburgh Compound B

We evaluated the region-to-region correlation, laterality and asymmetry of amyloid deposition in subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or Alzheimer's disease (AD) using the amyloid tracer, Pittsburgh Compound B (PiB). Seventeen subjects, including 7 with MCI (MMSE 26.7 ± 2.4) and 10 with AD (MMSE of 24.8 ± 2.7) underwent PiB imaging. Measures of laterality (i.e., group-wise predilection for right or left) and asymmetry (i.e., group-wise predilection for unequal PiB retention between the two hemispheres) were calculated for 17 Regions of Interest (ROIs). Regional correlations were calculated along with within-group and between-groups statistical analyses of laterality and asymmetry metrics. The median correlation between PiB retention across all pairs of ROIs was 0.65, with highest correlations found in areas of highest PiB retention (r = 0.74). Overall, PiB retention was symmetric bilaterally, but there was PiB laterality in MCI in dorsal frontal cortex [(t(6) = 3.05, p = 0.02, L > R] and sensory-motor area [t(6) = 3.10, p = 0.02, L > R] and in AD in the occipital pole (t(9) = -2.63, p = 0.03, R > L). The most significant asymmetries in PiB retention were found in sub-cortical white matter (t(6) = 3.99, p = 0.01) and middle precuneus [(t(6) = 3.57, p = 0.01] in MCI, and in lateral temporal cortex (t(9) = 3.02, p = 0.01) and anterior ventral striatum [t(9) = 2.37, p = 0.04] in AD. No group differences (AD versus MCI) were detected in laterality [F (1, 15) = 0.15, p = 0.7] or asymmetry [F (1, 15) = 0.7, p = 0.42].