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. 2010 Apr;36(3):248-57.
doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2990.2010.01071.x. Epub 2010 Jan 29.

Analysis of beta-amyloid (Abeta) deposition in the temporal lobe in Alzheimer's disease using Fourier (spectral) analysis

R A Armstrong  1 , N J Cairns
Affiliations

Analysis of beta-amyloid (Abeta) deposition in the temporal lobe in Alzheimer's disease using Fourier (spectral) analysis

R A Armstrong et al. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol. 2010 Apr.

Abstract

Aim: To determine the spatial pattern of beta-amyloid (Abeta) deposition throughout the temporal lobe in Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Methods: Sections of the complete temporal lobe from six cases of sporadic AD were immunolabelled with antibody against Abeta. Fourier (spectral) analysis was used to identify sinusoidal patterns in the fluctuation of Abeta deposition in a direction parallel to the pia mater or alveus.

Results: Significant sinusoidal fluctuations in density were evident in 81/99 (82%) analyses. In 64% of analyses, two frequency components were present with density peaks of Abeta deposits repeating every 500-1000 microm and at distances greater than 1000 microm. In 25% of analyses, three or more frequency components were present. The estimated period or wavelength (number of sample units to complete one full cycle) of the first and second frequency components did not vary significantly between gyri of the temporal lobe, but there was evidence that the fluctuations of the classic deposits had longer periods than the diffuse and primitive deposits.

Conclusions: (i) Abeta deposits exhibit complex sinusoidal fluctuations in density in the temporal lobe in AD; (ii) fluctuations in Abeta deposition may reflect the formation of Abeta deposits in relation to the modular and vascular structure of the cortex; and (iii) Fourier analysis may be a useful statistical method for studying the patterns of Abeta deposition both in AD and in transgenic models of disease.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
The three major types of β-amyloid (Aβ) deposit: a) diffuse (‘pre-amyloid’), b) primitive, and c) classic (‘dense-cored’) deposits (Aβ immunohistochemistry, bar = 1μm).
Fig 2
Fig 2
The fluctuating density (number of deposits per 200 × 1000μm plot) of the diffuse beta;-amyloid (Aβ) deposits parallel to the pia mater along the upper laminae of the MTG in case C.
Fig 3
Fig 3
The frequency distribution of the spectrogram values derived from the data shown in Fig 2. Goodness of fit of the negative exponential distribution (N = 84, Fisher-Kappa statistic = 8.345, Kolmogorov-Smirnov KS = 0.43; P < 0.001 indicating a significant departure from an exponential distribution).
Fig 4
Fig 4
Spectral density at each period for the data shown in Fig 2. Three significant peaks are evident: 1) at a period of 2.62 units representing a complete Aβ deposit density cycle every 524μm (i.e., 2.62 × basic field size of 200μm), 2) at a period of 12 units representing fluctuation of deposits on a larger scale with cycles recurring every 2400μm, and 3) maximum spectral density at a period of 42 units representing an even larger scale of fluctuation repeating every 8400μm.
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