White matter microstructure changes in a Bcan knockout mouse model

Abstract

Recent genome-wide association studies using UK Biobank brain imaging datasets showed associations between microstructural MRI measures in white matter and genetic loci of BCAN, a gene encoding a protein implicated in neurodegeneration and synaptic transmission. To investigate these associations, we acquired ex vivo MRI data in a Bcan knockout mouse model. Our results show significant differences in FA and T2* for some tracts in wild-type males compared to homozygous males, with consistent trends of higher FA and MD across WM tracts. Future histology work in the same brains will reveal the biological changes underpinning these differences.