OO011 - AEROBIC GLYCOLYSIS IN OLDER ADULTS WITH WHITE MATTER HYPERINTENSITIES (ID 1098)
- Manu S. Goyal (United States of America)
- Matthew R. Brier (United States of America)
- Tyler Blazey (United States of America)
- Marcus Raichle (United States of America)
- Tammie Benzinger (United States of America)
- John C. Morris (United States of America)
- Abraham Z. Snyder (United States of America)
- Andrei G. Vlassenko (United States of America)
Abstract
Aims
White matter hyperintensities (WMH) owing to small vessel disease are a common finding of the aged population and are associated with increased risk of stroke and neurodegeneration including Alzheimer disease. The existence of perilesional abnormalities surrounding WMHs has been documented using brain magnetic resonance imaging. We investigated cerebral metabolism with positron emission tomography (PET) to study metabolic abnormalities in WMH and the surrounding WM.
Methods
We investigated aerobic glycolysis (AG), total brain glucose (CMRGlc) and oxygen (CMRO2) metabolism, and cerebral blood flow (CBF) within the core and surround (“penumbra”) of WMH, and in normal appearing WM (NAWM) using multi-tracer positron emission tomography (PET) in older adults with WMH (n=20) and in age-matched individuals without WMH (HC-O, n=20). Two different analytic strategies were used to demonstrate the existence of a penumbra surrounding WMH.
Results
AG and CMRGlc, but not CMRO2 or CBF, were higher in NAWM in the WMH group compared to HC-O. WMH cores showed the lowest values for all parameters including AG, which was the highest in penumbra. In a group of young HC individuals (HC-Y), areas not vulnerable to WMH development were more glycolytic compared to regions vulnerable to WMH.
Conclusions
Our data suggest the existence of glycolytic penumbra surrounding WMH. Moreover, WMH tend to form in areas of relatively low glycolysis. These findings suggest that glycolysis in the WM may provide a protective and/or compensatory process in the context of small vessel disease, and that impaired glycolysis might contribute to the formation of WMH.
