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Cortical involvement in four cases of primary lateral sclerosis using [11C]-flumazenil PET

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Abstract

Four PLS patients underwent cerebral [11C]-flumazenil PET. They were compared firstly with a group of controls, then later directly with a group of sporadic ALS patients and a familial ALS group homozygous for the ‘D90A’ SOD1 gene mutation. There was a similar pattern of decreased binding in PLS patients when compared to controls as that seen in a previous study of sporadic ALS patients, supporting the concept that PLS is part of the same overall spectrum of MND. However, in direct group comparisons, both sporadic and homD90A ALS patients demonstrated relative decreases in anterior and orbito-frontal binding compared to PLS patients, suggesting that there may be differences in cortical vulnerability between phenotypic groups.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Neurology, The Radcliffe Infirmary, Woodstock Road, OX2 6HE, Oxford, UK

    Martin R. Turner PhD

  2. MRC Clinical Sciences Centre and Division of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, W12 0NN, London, UK

    Alexander Hammers PhD & David J. Brooks DSc

  3. MRC Centre for Neurodegeneration Research, Dept. of Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry King's College London, SE5 8AF, London, UK

    Ammar Al-Chalabi PhD, Christopher E. Shaw MD & P. Nigel Leigh PhD

  4. Dept. of Neurology, Umeå University Hospital, Umeå, Sweden

    Peter M. Andersen DMSc

  5. Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, WC1N 3BG, London, UK

    Alexander Hammers PhD & David J. Brooks DSc

Authors
  1. Martin R. Turner PhD
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  2. Alexander Hammers PhD
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  3. Ammar Al-Chalabi PhD
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  4. Christopher E. Shaw MD
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  5. Peter M. Andersen DMSc
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  6. David J. Brooks DSc
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  7. P. Nigel Leigh PhD
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Correspondence to Martin R. Turner PhD.

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Turner, M.R., Hammers, A., Al-Chalabi, A. et al. Cortical involvement in four cases of primary lateral sclerosis using [11C]-flumazenil PET. J Neurol 254, 1033–1036 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-006-0482-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00415-006-0482-7

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