中国神经再生研究(英文版) ›› 2026, Vol. 21 ›› Issue (8): 3543-3544.doi: 10.4103/NRR.NRR-D-25-00828

• 观点:退行性病与再生 • 上一篇    下一篇

磁共振成像结构协方差分析辅助量化神经退行性疾病和脆弱网络

  

  • 出版日期:2026-08-18 发布日期:2026-04-25

Quantifying neurodegeneration and vulnerable networks by the aid of structural covariance analysis from magnetic resonance imaging

Nils Schröter, Daniel Martens, Umut Yilmaz, Gabriel Gonzalez-Escamilla, Sergiu Groppa*   

  1. Department of Neurology, Saarland University Hospital, Homburg, Germany (Schröter N, Martens D, Gonzalez-Escamilla G, Groppa S)
    Department of Neuroradiology, Saarland University Hospital, Homburg, Germany (Yilmaz U)
  • Online:2026-08-18 Published:2026-04-25
  • Contact: Dr. h.c. Sergiu Groppa, Sergiu.Groppa@uks.eu.

摘要: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2551-5655 (Sergiu Groppa)

Abstract: Neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease(PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, impose a considerable social and economic burden on society and have dramatic consequences for individuals and their families. The majorityof existing interventions have been found to be capable of only a slight modification of disease progression or to moderately delay significant functional decline in motor, cognitive, or mental domains. To develop effective therapeutic strategies, robust methods for the quantification of neurodegeneration are required. Imaging modalities such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) can be used to visually stratify patients, exclude other symptomatic causes of neurodegeneration and assist with differential diagnosis (Schröter et al., 2025). However, these processes have significant limitations when it comes to the exact quantification of neurodegeneration, the prediction of disease trajectories in individual subjects and the tracing of group-level effects in response to therapeutic interventions. Fluorodeoxyglucose PET, tau PET, and amyloid PET are relevant diagnostic tools for AD and atypical Parkinsonism. However, their limited availability restricts their clinical use across countries and health systems. MRI imaging at 3T is now widely available, while ultra-high fields at 7T is increasingly accessible, albeit primarily within specific research centers. Nonetheless, both field strengths offer great potential for further exploration in research and clinical applications. This will facilitate the translation of research into clinical solutions by developing robust biomarkers for tracking neurodegeneration in individual patients and large populations. In addition, the utilization of PET, or the combination of MRI and PET with adaptation of the structural similarity measures (SSM) has the potential to highly advance the field of tools for decision-making at the singlesubject level. One such biomarker, however, that is derived from MRI is hippocampal atrophy, which has been developed alongside automatic analysis of the frontal cortex and other regions, as well as measures of regional and global atrophy. These are used for the diagnostic staging and differential diagnosis of AD, atypical Parkinsonism, and other neurodegenerative conditions. These were the first steps in the detection of vulnerable or altered brain regions and networks at the group level, having also further predictive value at the single-subject level.