Abstract #4065

N-acetyl aspartate predicts disease severity in an animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS)

Amber Michelle Hill¹, Mohamed Tachrount², David L Thomas³, Kenneth J Smith⁴, Xavier Golay⁵, and Olga Ciccarelli¹

¹NMR Research Unit, Queen Square MS Centre, Department of Neuroinflammation, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom, ²Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom, ³Leonard Wolfson Experimental Neurology Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom, ⁴Department of Neuroinflammation, Queen Square MS Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom, ⁵Department of Brain Repair and Rehabilitation, Queen Square MS Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom

EAE, an animal model of MS, can be investigated with MR to address the clinical need to understand mechanisms of the MS disease course. Longitudinal MR studies with EAE are currently under-explored. This study investigated longitudinal changes in metabolite concentrations and lesion development, in relation to neurological deficits in EAE, using 9.4T MRI and ¹H-MRS. Five time-points of EAE disease progression were assessed. The results suggest that before visible signs of neurological deficits, higher [NAA] predicts the severity of late-stage neurological deficits in EAE. Considering NAA is predominantly associated with neuronal mitochondria, this may reflect relevant pathological processes in MS.

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