Eva Tysiak1, Jens Wuerfel1,2
1Cecilie Vogt Clinic for Neurology, Charit University Medicine, Berlin, Germany; 2Institute of Neuroradiology, University Schleswig-Holstein, Luebeck, Germany
Circumventricular organs (CVO) are brain areas with incomplete endothelial blood-brain barrier (BBB) and regarded as gates to the brain. During inflammation, CVO may exert an active role in immune cell recruitment into the brain. In a longitudinal study we investigated BBB leakage of CVO in vivo applying Gadofluorine M (Gf) enhanced MRI and histology in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an animal model of Multiple Sclerosis. Gf signal intensity of the choroid plexus, the subfornicular organ and the area postrema increased significantly during EAE, correlating with disease severity. Furthermore, Gf improved the detection of occult lesions, particularly in optic nerve inflammation.