Exploring Pathology Along the White Matter Tract near Hyperintense Vasogenic Edema through Multiparametric MRI and Diffusion

Motivation: There is a critical need for neuroimaging methodologies that can characterize the neuropathological changes associated with cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Goal(s): Our goal was to explore CAA-associated pathology using multiparametric MRI including diffusion MRI. Approach: A combination of MRI techniques and histopathology was employed to evaluate and characterize the underlying neuropathological changes in a squirrel monkey model of AD. Results: Unique pathology was found to be present along normal appearing white matter tracts using conventional MRI near areas of hyperintense vasogenic edema. Impact: Given the prominence of CAA in human AD cases and the critical need for a more proximate model of AD pathology, our study evaluated the feasibility of advanced neuroimaging methodologies characterizing neuropathological changes in squirrel monkeys that develop spontaneous CAA.