title: Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy detects a relative decrease of N-acetylaspartate in the hippocampus of patients with dementia with Lewy bodies.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To characterize the cerebral metabolic changes in dementia with Lewy bodies patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  The metabolic ratios of NAA/Cr and Cho/Cr in bilateral hippocampus were determined by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in 8 patients and 8 age-matched healthy controls.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Dementia with Lewy bodies patients showed significantly lower NAA/Cr ratios in bilateral hippocampus, while the Cho/Cr ratio did not differ from the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data show relatively decrease of N-acetylaspartate in the hippocampus of patients with early or intermediate stage DLB. Hence, damage of neurons seems to be an early alteration in DLB.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University College of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Xiaqing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xuan
authors.forename: Meiping
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.forename: Xiangyang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gong
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001224:Aspartic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002794:Choline / Q000378:metabolism; D003401:Creatine / Q000378:metabolism; D003704:Dementia / Q000201:enzymology*; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000201:enzymology*; D006801:Humans; D020961:Lewy Body Disease / Q000201:enzymology*; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D011522:Protons
chemical_list: D011522:Protons; D001224:Aspartic Acid; C000179:N-acetylaspartate; D003401:Creatine; D002794:Choline