title: Adipose Tissue Distribution in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease: A Whole Body MRI Case-Control Study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Total and central adiposity have been associated with increased risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Visceral and subcutaneous adipose tissues have different metabolic characteristics and could therefore be differentially associated with AD.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare regional fat distribution determined by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in AD patients and healthy controls and investigate associations with stage of the disease and chemical markers. The investigation was performed in a prospective case-control study.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined thirty patients with mild to moderate AD by whole-body MRI (1.5 T) and clinical questionnaires in comparison to thirty cognitively healthy age- and gender-matched study participants. Volumes of total, subcutaneous, and visceral body fat tissue were determined by an unbiased automatic analysis algorithm. Levels of leptin, ghrelin, and adiponectin were determined in serum, amyloid-β (Aβ)(1-42) and tau protein levels in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Male AD patients displayed significantly more total fat tissue than male controls. This difference was not observed in women. We observed a trend toward higher volume of visceral fat tissue in all patients (p = 0.13). Severity of disease was not associated with fat distribution in our study. Increased leptin levels correlated with lower CSF Aβ(1-42) in female, but not in male, AD patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Fat volume is increased in male, but not in female AD patients. Negative correlation of leptin levels and CSF Aβ(1-42) in females might be one co-factor for the increased AD risk of females. Further studies are required to confirm this gender difference in fat volume during AD and evaluate its pathophysiological importance.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Diehl-Wiesenecker
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Christine A F
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: von Armin
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.|Inserm U1118, Mécanismes centraux et périphériques de la neurodegenerescence, Strasbourg, France.|Université de Strasbourg, Faculté de Médecine, UMR_S1118, Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Luc
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dupuis
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Hans-Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Albert C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Ludolph
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kassubek
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000473:pathology*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D050218:Body Fat Distribution; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D020738:Leptin / Q000378:metabolism; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010363:Pattern Recognition, Automated; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D051598:Whole Body Imaging / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D020738:Leptin; D010446:Peptide Fragments; C075222:amyloid beta-protein (1-42)
keywords: Leptin; magnetic resonance imaging; subcutaneous fat; visceral fat