Positron emission tomography harmonization in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative: A scalable and rigorous approach to multisite amyloid and tau quantification

Susan M Landau; Theresa M Harrison; Suzanne L Baker; Martin S Boswell; JiaQie Lee; Jacinda Taggett; Tyler J Ward; Trevor Chadwick; Alice Murphy; Charles DeCarli; Christopher G Schwarz; Prashanthi Vemuri; Clifford R Jack Jr; Robert A Koeppe; William J Jagust; U.S. POINTER Study Group and for the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative

doi:10.1002/alz.14378

Positron emission tomography harmonization in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative: A scalable and rigorous approach to multisite amyloid and tau quantification

Alzheimers Dement. 2024 Nov 19. doi: 10.1002/alz.14378. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Susan M Landau¹, Theresa M Harrison¹, Suzanne L Baker², Martin S Boswell², JiaQie Lee¹, Jacinda Taggett¹, Tyler J Ward¹, Trevor Chadwick¹, Alice Murphy¹, Charles DeCarli³, Christopher G Schwarz⁴, Prashanthi Vemuri⁴, Clifford R Jack Jr⁴, Robert A Koeppe⁵, William J Jagust^{1

2}; U.S. POINTER Study Group and for the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative

Affiliations

¹ Neuroscience Department, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA.
² Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA.
³ University of California, Davis, California, USA.
⁴ Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.
⁵ Department of Radiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.

PMID: 39559932
DOI: 10.1002/alz.14378

Abstract

Introduction: A key goal of the Alzheimer's Disease NeuroImaging Initiative (ADNI) positron emission tomography (PET) Core is to harmonize quantification of β-amyloid (Aβ) and tau PET image data across multiple scanners and tracers.

Methods: We developed an analysis pipeline (Berkeley PET Imaging Pipeline, B-PIP) for ADNI Aβ and tau PET images and applied it to PET data from other multisite studies. Steps include image pre-processing, refacing, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)/PET co-registration, visual quality control (QC), quantification of tracer uptake, and standardization of Aβ and tau standardized uptake value ratios (SUVrs) across tracers.

Results: Measurements from 10,105 cross-sectional and longitudinal Aβ and tau PET scans acquired in several studies between 2010 and 2024 can be processed, harmonized, and directly merged across tracers and cohorts.

Discussion: The B-PIP developed in ADNI is a scalable image harmonization approach used in several observational studies and clinical trials that facilitates rigorous Aβ and tau PET quantification and data sharing.

Highlights: Quantitative results from ADNI Aβ and tau PET data are generated using a rigorous, scalable image processing pipeline This pipeline has been applied to PET data from several other large, multisite studies and trials Quantitative outcomes are harmonizable across studies and are shared with the scientific community.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; Aβ PET; tau PET.

Abstract

Grants and funding