title: PET imaging of the dopamine transporter in progressive supranuclear palsy and Parkinson's disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To differentiate the patterns of dopamine transporter loss between idiopathic PD and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).
  
  
  METHODS
  We used the radiotracer [11C]-WIN 35,428 and PET. Regional striatal dopamine transporter binding was measured in the caudate, anterior putamen, and posterior putamen of six patients with L-dopa-responsive stage 2 PD, six patients with PSP, and six age-comparable healthy controls.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In patients with idiopathic PD, the most marked abnormality was observed in the posterior putamen (77% reduction), whereas transporter density in the anterior putamen (60% reduction) and the caudate (44% reduction) was less affected. Unlike the patients with PD, the PSP group showed a relatively uniform degree of involvement in the caudate (40% reduction), anterior putamen (47% reduction), and posterior putamen (51% reduction). When posterior putamen/caudate ratios were calculated, these values were significantly lower in patients with PD than they were in patients with PSP (p = 0.0008) and the control group (p < 0.0001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with PD have a more pronounced loss of dopamine transporters in the posterior putamen due to a subdivisional involvement of nigrostriatal dopaminergic projections in idiopathic PD. This technique is useful in the determination of neurochemical changes underlying PD and PSP, thus differentiating between them.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ilgin
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zubieta
authors.forename: S G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Reich
authors.forename: R F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Dannals
authors.forename: H T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Ravert
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Frost
mesh_terms: D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D003042:Cocaine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D018765:Dopamine Uptake Inhibitors; D006801:Humans; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D008875:Middle Aged; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D013494:Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed
chemical_list: D002250:Carbon Radioisotopes; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D018765:Dopamine Uptake Inhibitors; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C021279:(1R-(exo,exo))-3-(4-fluorophenyl)-8-methyl-8- azabicyclo(3.2.1)octane-2-carboxylic acid, methyl ester; D003042:Cocaine