title: White matter hyperintensities and cortical acetylcholinesterase activity in parkinsonian dementia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relationship between the severity of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) and cortical acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in parkinsonian dementia (PDem).
  
  
  METHODS
  PDem (n = 11) and control subjects (n = 14) underwent [11C]methyl-4-piperidinyl propionate (11C-PMP) AChE brain positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. Presence of WMH on proton density and T2 MR images was scored using a modified version of the semi-quantitative rating scale by Scheltens et al. [J Neurol Sci114 (1993)].
  
  
  RESULTS
  Analysis demonstrated significantly lower mean cortical (11)C-PMP k3 hydrolysis rates in PDem (-19.9%) when compared with control subjects (P < 0.0001). PDem subjects had higher mean severity of WMH (+20.1%) when compared with control subjects (P < 0.05). When WMH severity was entered into the analysis of variance model, there was no significant co-variate effect on cortical AChE activity (F = 0.24, ns).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The concomitant presence of mild to moderate WMH in patients with PDem does not have a significant effect on cortical AChE activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University of Pittsburgh and Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Marshall
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shchelchkov
authors.forename: D I
authors.initials: DI
authors.lastname: Kaufer
authors.forename: L S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Ivanco
authors.forename: N I
authors.initials: NI
authors.lastname: Bohnen
mesh_terms: D000110:Acetylcholinesterase / Q000378:metabolism*; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology*; D003704:Dementia / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020734:Parkinsonian Disorders / Q000201:enzymology / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology*; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D000110:Acetylcholinesterase