Yumei Yan1, Longchuan Li2, Govind
Nair2, Todd Preuss3, Mar Sanchez4,5, Mark
Wilson3, Xiaoping Hu2, James Herndon3,
Xiaodong Zhang1
1Yerkes Imaging Center, Yerkes National
Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; 2biomedical
engineering, Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta,
GA, United States; 3Neuroscience Division, Yerkes National Primate
Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; 4Psychiatry
& Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA,
United States; 5Psychobiology Division, Yerkes National Primate
Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
Non-human
primate model was employed to access the optic nerve (ON) development and aging
with Diffusion tension imaging (DTI). ADC and FA evolution in the ON of
monkeys was investigated systematically. Significant changes were found
between 21 months with 6 years of age, but not observed in the ON in early
development. Furthermore, DTI revealed age-related changes in older rhesus
monkeys that may represent axonal and myelin degeneration. DTI may provide a
means to evaluate ON disorders or injury.
Keywords