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Projekt Druckansicht

PET Messung der Blut-Hirn-Schranken Funktion in der Alzheimer Erkrankung

Fachliche Zuordnung Klinische Neurologie; Neurochirurgie und Neuroradiologie
Förderung Förderung von 2014 bis 2017
Projektkennung Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Projektnummer 252102222
 
Erstellungsjahr 2018

Zusammenfassung der Projektergebnisse

There is currently a scarcity of effective treatment options for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). A major hallmark of AD is the accumulation of senile plaques containing β-amyloid (Aβ) in the brain. Several lines of evidence suggest that reduced Aβ clearance from the brain underlies Aβ accumulation. Membrane transport proteins, such as P-glycoprotein (ABCB1) and multidrug resistance-associated protein 1 (ABCC1), which are expressed in endothelial cells of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), may contribute to excreting Aβ from brain into the blood stream. In this binational collaborative project (DACH), we used the non-invasive nuclear imaging method positron emission tomography (PET) to measure the function of ABCC1 and ABCB1 over the time course of disease progression in commonly used mouse AD models. Moreover, we tested a pharmacological approach to induce cerebral ABCC1 function as a potential therapeutic approach to reduce Aβ in the brain. PET imaging with the ABCC1 radiotracer 6-bromo-7-[11C]methylpurine failed to reveal alterations in ABCC1 function in the brains of APPPS1 mice as compared with age-matched control mice. Moreover, treatment with the antiemetic drug and potential ABCC1 inducer thiethylperazine (Torecan®) did not alter cerebral ABCC1 function in the employed mouse model. PET with the ABCB1 substrate (R)-[11C]verapamil revealed significant differences in cerebral ABCB1 function between AD and control mice at an early age of 50 days. Both in AD and control mice, there was a pronounced functional decline in cerebral ABCB1 function with increasing age, reaching a reduction of approximately 50% at the age of one year. Our data suggest that impaired ABCB1 function is present before substantial deposition of Aβ occurs indicating that ABCB1 may play a causative role in the progression of AD and that pharmacological strategies to enhance ABCB1 function at the BBB may be a useful approach to treat AD. In summary, we validated non-invasive imaging approaches to measure the function of cerebral efflux transporters, which have been implicated in brain Aβ clearance. We found significant alterations in cerebral ABCB1 function and no changes in cerebral ABCC1 function. Our imaging approaches can be readily translated to AD patients to test novel therapeutic approaches to induce transporter function at the human BBB. Moreover, PET imaging of transporter function at the BBB may prove suitable as a tool for early diagnosis of AD.

Projektbezogene Publikationen (Auswahl)

 
 

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