11C-PK11195 PET imaging and white matter changes in Parkinson’s disease dementia

Abstract

There is evidence of increased microglial activation in Parkinson’s disease (PD) as shown by in vivo PET ligand such as 11C-PK11195. In addition, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) imaging reveals widespread changes in PD, especially when the associated dementia develops. In the present case series, we studied five subjects with Parkinson’s disease dementia (PDD). Our findings suggest that while DTI metrics mirror cognitive severity, higher 11C-PK11195 binding seems to be associated with a relative preservation of both white matter tracts and cognition. Longitudinal studies are warranted to tackle the complex relationship between microglial activation and structural abnormalities in neurodegenerative conditions.