Open AccessInteraction between sex and neurofilament light chain on brain structure and clinical severity in Huntington’s disease
Author(s) -
Sampedro Frederic,
MartinezHorta Saul,
PérezPérez Jesús,
PerezGonzalez Rocio,
HortaBarba Andrea,
Campolongo Antonia,
AracilBolaños Ignacio,
GomezAnson Beatriz,
Kulisevsky Jaume
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
annals of clinical and translational neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.824
H-Index - 42
ISSN - 2328-9503
DOI - 10.1002/acn3.51460
Subject(s) - atrophy , medicine , neurodegeneration , cerebrospinal fluid , disease , huntington's disease , pathology , magnetic resonance imaging , neuroscience , psychology , radiology
Female Huntington’s disease (HD) patients have consistently shown a faster clinical worsening than male, but the underlying mechanisms responsible for this observation remain unknown. Here, we describe how sex modifies the impact of neurodegeneration on brain atrophy and clinical severity in HD. Cerebrospinal fluid neurofilament light chain (NfL) levels were used as a biological measure of neurodegeneration, and brain atrophy was assessed by structural magnetic resonance imaging. We found that larger NfL values in women reflect higher brain atrophy and clinical severity than in men ( p < 0.05 for an interaction model). This differential vulnerability could have important implications in clinical trials.