Tau PET imaging can identify Alzheimer's subtype associated with psychosis: Study

USA: Results from a recent study in Translational Psychiatry suggests that increase in tau pathology in frontal, medial temporal, and occipital cortices as seen with PET imaging, is associated with psychosis and a more rapid cognitive and functional decline in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. 

Psychosis in Alzheimer's disease is a distinct disease subtype tied to a more rapid illness progression as evident with a astened mortality and increased velocity of f cognitive decline. Previous studies have suggested tau neuropathology to be a possible mediator of the accelerated decline in AD psychosis.

Tau positron emission tomography (PET) neuroimaging gives the opportunity to evaluate tau pathology in-vivo, so that clinical symptomatology can be compared with disease pathology. [18F]-AV1451 (Flortaucipir) is a PET ligand having high affinity for insoluble aired-helical filaments (PHFs) of hyperphosphorylated tau. 

Against the above background, J. J. Gomar, Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Manhassett, NY, USA, and colleagues aimed to determine whether the development of psychosis and worsened prognosis in AD is associated with an increased burden of tau pathology that can be identified with tau imaging.