Pre-Clinical Changes Observed by Magnetic Resonance Imaging in a Hamster Model of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy: a Potential Biomarker of Prion Infection

Abstract

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 T 2 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 disease, and could play a role in pathogenesis.