Table 1 Biomarkers for diagnosis of dementias

Amyloid deposition

Fibrillar amyloid availability

[¹¹C]Pittsburgh compound B PET

Increased brain retention

Amyloid deposition^a

Fibrillar amyloid availability

[¹⁸F]Florbetapir PET

Increased brain retention

Amyloid deposition^a

Fibrillar amyloid availability

[¹⁸F]Florbetapen PET

Increased brain retention

Amyloid deposition^a

Fibrillar amyloid availability

[¹⁸F]Flutametamol PET

Increased brain retention

Amyloid deposition^a

Aβ_1-42 CSF concentrations

Lumbar puncture

Declined in CSF concentration

Amyloid deposition [2, 4, 5]

Aβ_1-42 serum levels

Lumbar puncture

Declined in serum concentration

Amyloid deposition [2, 4, 5]

Neurodegeneration (downstream)

Brain metabolism or perfusion

[¹⁸F]FDG PET or [⁹⁹Tc]HMPAO/

ECD SPECT

Brain hypometabolism/perfusion in parietotemporal regions

Synaptic depletion^a

Total tau CSF concentrations

Lumbar puncture

Increased CSF concentration

Cell death [2, 4, 5]

Tau-181 CSF concentrations

Lumbar puncture

Increased CSF concentration

Tau phosphorylation [2, 4, 5]⁵

Brain atrophy

MRI

Decreased volume loss

Atrophy^a

Fibrillar tau accumulation

PET

Increased of retention

Tangle deposition^a

Non-Alzheimer's disease biomarkers

Brain lesions

MRI

Exclusion of alternative pathologies

Tumor, cerebrovascular disease^a

Brain metabolism or perfusion

[¹⁸F]FDG PET or [99Tc]HMPAO/

ECD SPECT

Brain hypometabolism/perfusion in occipital regions or asymmetric frontotemporal regions

Diagnoses of LBD or FTD, respectively^a

Dopamine transporter availability

[¹²³I]Ioflupane (DAT) SPECT

Reduced uptake in basal ganglia

Reduction of dopamine transporters typical of LBD and other Parkinsonian syndromes^a

Inflammation

FLAIR MRI

Increased T2* signal

Parenchymal lesion^a

Hemosiderin

Susceptibility MRI

Loss on gradient-recalled echo

Hemosiderin leakage and macrophages in the brain parenchyma^a