@article{10902/28681,
year = {2022},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10902/28681},
abstract = {Background
To evaluate a wide range of optical coherence tomography (OCT) parameters for possible application as a screening tool for cognitively healthy individuals at risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD), assessing the potential relationship with established cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) core AD biomarkers and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Methods
We studied 99 participants from the Valdecilla Study for Memory and Brain Aging. This is a prospective cohort for multimodal biomarker discovery and validation that includes participants older than 55 years without dementia. Participants received a comprehensive neuropsychological battery and underwent structural 3-T brain MRI, lumbar puncture for CSF biomarkers (phosphorylated-181-Tau (pTau), total Tau (tTau), beta-amyloid 1-42 (A? 1-42), and beta-amyloid 1-40 (A? 1-40)). All individuals underwent OCT to measure the retinal ganglion cell layer (GCL), the retinal nerve fiber layer (RFNL), the Bruch?s membrane opening-minimum rim width (BMO-MRW), and choroidal thickness (CT). In the first stage, we performed a univariate analysis, using Student?s t-test. In the second stage, we performed a multivariate analysis including only those OCT parameters that discriminated at a nominal level, between positive/negative biomarkers in stage 1.

Results
We found significant differences between the OCT measurements of pTau- and tTau-positive individuals compared with those who were negative for these markers, most notably that the GCL and the RNFL were thinner in the former. In stage 2, our dependent variables were the quantitative values of CSF markers and the hippocampal volume. The A? 1-42/40 ratio did not show a significant correlation with OCT measurements while the associations between pTau and tTau with GCL were statistically significant, especially in the temporal region of the macula. Besides, the multivariate analysis showed a significant correlation between hippocampal volume with GCL and RNFL. However, after false discovery rate correction, only the associations with hippocampal volume remained significant.

Conclusions
We found a significant correlation between Tau (pTau) and neurodegeneration biomarkers (tTau and hippocampus volume) with GCL degeneration and, to a lesser degree, with damage in RFNL. OCT analysis constitutes a non-invasive and unexpensive biomarker that allows the detection of neurodegeneration in cognitively asymptomatic individuals.},
organization = {Funding: This work was supported by grants from Instituto de Salud Carlos III (Fondo de Investigación Sanitario, PI08/0139, PI12/02288, PI16/01652, PI20/01011), Journal of Place Management and Development (JPND) (DEMTEST PI11/03028), Centro Investigación Biomédica en Red Enfermedades (CIBERNED), and Siemens Healthineers AG. Availability of data and materials The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request
Acknowledgements: We thank the Valdecilla Biobank (PT17/0015/0019), a member of the Spanish Biobank Network, for their support and collaboration in the sample collection and management. Our heartfelt thanks to the participants of the Valdecilla Cohort for their generosity},
publisher = {Springer Nature},
publisher = {Alzheimer's Research & Therapy (2022) 14:57},
title = {The retinal ganglion cell layer reflects neurodegenerative changes in cognitively unimpaired individuals},
author = {López-de-Eguileta, Alicia and López García, Sara and Lage Martínez, Carmen and Pozueta Cantudo, Ana and García-Martínez, María and Kazimierczak, Marta Eryka and Bravo Cevallos, María and Irure Ventura, Juan and López Hoyos, Marcos and Muñoz Cacho, Pedro and Rodríguez-Pérez, Noelia and Tordesillas Gutiérrez, Diana and Goikoetxea, Alexander and Nebot, Claudia and Rodríguez Rodríguez, Eloy Manuel and Casado Rojo, Alfonso and Sánchez-Juan, Pascual},
}