Exploring the brain-body composition relationship in Huntington’s disease

Authors

Mitchell Turner, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow
Alvaro Reyes
Danielle M. Bartlett, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow
Scott Culpin, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow
Nicolas H. Hart, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow
Luca Hardt
Kirk Feindel
Govinda R. Poudel
Mel Ziman, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow
Travis M. Cruickshank, Edith Cowan UniversityFollow

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Title

Journal of Musculoskeletal Neuronal Interactions

ISSN

11087161

Volume

20

Issue

3

First Page

332

Last Page

338

PubMed ID

32877970

Publisher

Hylonome Publications

School

Exercise Medicine Research Institute / School of Medical and Health Sciences

RAS ID

31467

Comments

Turner, M., Reyes, A., Bartlett, D. M., Culpin, S., Hart, N. H., Hardt, L., ... & Cruickshank, T. M. (2020). Exploring the brain-body composition relationship in Huntington’s disease. Journal of Musculoskeletal Neuronal Interactions, 20(3), 332-338. http://www.ismni.org/jmni/index.php

Abstract

© 2020, International Society of Musculoskeletal and Neuronal Interactions. All rights reserved. Objective: Changes in body composition are a common feature of Huntington’s disease (HD) and are associated with disease progression. However, whether these changes in body composition are associated with degeneration of the striatum is unknown. This study aimed to explore the associations between body composition metrics and striatal brain volume in individuals with premanifest HD and healthy controls. Methods: Twenty-one individuals with premanifest HD and 22 healthy controls participated in this cross-sectional study. Body composition metrics were measured via dualenergy X-ray absorptiometry. Structural magnetic resonance imaging of subcortical structures of the brain was performed to evaluate striatal volume. Results: There were no significant differences in body composition metrics between the premanifest HD and healthy controls group. Striatal volume was significantly reduced in individuals with premanifest HD compared to healthy controls. A significant association between bone mineral density (BMD) and right putamen volume was also observed in individuals with premanifest HD. Conclusion: These findings show striatal degeneration is evident during the premanifest stages of HD and associated with BMD. Additional longitudinal studies are nevertheless needed to confirm these findings.

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