Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Mar 26:9:181.
doi: 10.3389/fneur.2018.00181. eCollection 2018.

Evaluation of Microglial Activation in Multiple Sclerosis Patients Using Positron Emission Tomography

Laura Airas  1   2 , Marjo Nylund  1   2 , Eero Rissanen  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Evaluation of Microglial Activation in Multiple Sclerosis Patients Using Positron Emission Tomography

Laura Airas et al. Front Neurol. .

Abstract

Understanding the mechanisms underlying progression in multiple sclerosis (MS) is one of the key elements contributing to the identification of appropriate therapeutic targets for this under-managed condition. In addition to plaque-related focal inflammatory pathology typical for relapsing remitting MS there are, in progressive MS, widespread diffuse alterations in brain areas outside the focal lesions. This diffuse pathology is tightly related to microglial activation and is co-localized with signs of neurodegeneration. Microglia are brain-resident cells of the innate immune system and overactivation of microglia is associated with several neurodegenerative diseases. Understanding the role of microglial activation in relation to developing neurodegeneration and disease progression may provide a key to developing therapies to target progressive MS. 18-kDa translocator protein (TSPO) is a mitochondrial molecule upregulated in microglia upon their activation. Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging using TSPO-binding radioligands provides a method to assess microglial activation in patients in vivo. In this mini-review, we summarize the current status of TSPO imaging in the field of MS. In addition, the review discusses new insights into the potential use of this method in treatment trials and in clinical assessment of progressive MS.

Keywords: 18-kDa translocator protein; imaging; microglia; multiple sclerosis; positron emission tomography.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Gadolinium enhanced 3DT1 MRI image (left) and parametric [11C]PK11195-PET image overlayed with the 3DT1 image (right). Red arrows point to a chronic active T1-hypointense lesion with increased perilesional [11C]PK11195 binding demonstrative of microglial activation, and white arrows point to a chronic inactive lesion with negligible radioligand binding. In the parametric PET image, the color of each voxel represents the intensity of specific radioligand binding measured as distribution volume ratio (DVR) and denoted by the scaled color bar.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Nylander A, Hafler DA. Multiple sclerosis. J Clin Invest (2012) 122(4):1180–8. 10.1172/JCI58649 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Tutuncu M, Tang J, Zeid NA, Kale N, Crusan DJ, Atkinson EJ, et al. Onset of progressive phase is an age-dependent clinical milestone in multiple sclerosis. Mult Scler (2013) 19(2):188–98. 10.1177/1352458512451510 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Correale J, Gaitán MI, Ysrraelit MC, Fiol MP. Progressive multiple sclerosis: from pathogenic mechanisms to treatment. Brain (2017) 140(3):527–46. 10.1093/brain/aww258 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ransohoff RM, Hafler DA, Lucchinetti CF. Multiple sclerosis-a quiet revolution. Nat Rev Neurol (2015) 11(3):134–42. 10.1038/nrneurol.2015.14 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gandhi R, Laroni A, Weiner HL. Role of the innate immune system in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. J Neuroimmunol (2010) 221(1–2):7–14. 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2009.10.015 - DOI - PMC - PubMed