Molecular Biomarkers & Diagnosis

Stephanie. A. Booth

Publications

• Research Article
  Pre-Clinical Changes Observed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging in a Hamster Model of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy: a Potential Biomarker of Prion Infection
  Author(s): Richard. S. Baydack, Eilean J. McKenzie, Catherine Robertson, Stephanie. A. Booth, Mike Jackson and Timothy F. BoothRichard. S. Baydack, Eilean J. McKenzie, Catherine Robertson, Stephanie. A. Booth, Mike Jackson and Timothy F. Booth
  
  The objective of the study was to develop a model for the diagnosis of prion diseases in live animals, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Hamsters experimentally infected with the 263K strain of scrapie were imaged periodically during the course of prion infection. Changes in the brain, particularly the hippocampus, were observed during the first quarter of the incubation period. These changes included an increase in T2 relaxation time and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), indicative of an increase in the water content of tissues. These changes were apparent well before the appearance of clinical symptoms, and did not correlate with the typical histological changes characteristic of prion disease, (vacuolation, accumulation of PrP protein, gliosis) suggesting that the changes are caused by a progressive accumulation of fluid. This oedema may be a novel early marker of prion d.. Read More»
  DOI: 10.4172/2155-9929.1000120

  Abstract PDF