Topography of cerebral monoamine transporter availability in families with SCA2 mutations:: a voxel-wise [123I]β-CIT SPECT analysis

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the monoamine transporter status of dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine throughout the brain in spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2). To this end, nine patients were studied with [I-123]beta-CIT SPECT. Methods: Data were compared with ten age-matched healthy control subjects and ten patients with young-onset Parkinson's disease (YOPD), matched for age. Parametric SPECT images of the specific-to-non-displaceable equilibrium partition coefficient (V-3 ''), which is proportional to the receptor density (B (max)), were generated. In order to objectively localise focal changes in beta-CIT uptake throughout the brain volume without having to make an a priori hypothesis as to their location, statistical parametric mapping (SPM) was applied to SPECT images. Data clusters revealed by SPM, showing significant differences in V-3 '' values between groups, were transformed onto the individual V-3 '' image to obtain mean regional uptake values. Results: Both SCA2 and YOPD patients showed significant decreases in striatal [I-123]beta-CIT SPECT uptake when compared with controls. However, in SCA2 patients, additional reductions in caudate/anterior putamen, midbrain and pons [I-123]beta-CIT uptake were localised with SPM. Conclusion: Voxel-wise analysis of [I-123]beta-CIT SPECT revealed more widespread decline of monoamine transporter availability in SCA2 than in YOPD, reflecting differences in the underlying pathology. We suggest that the quantification of midbrain and pons [I-123]beta-CIT signal is likely to improve the diagnostic accuracy in patients presenting with clinical features of both SCA2 and YOPD at initial investigation.