INFRARED-SPECTRA OF HUMAN CENTRAL-NERVOUS-SYSTEM TISSUE - DIAGNOSIS OF ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE BY MULTIVARIATE ANALYSES

We present an infrared (IR) spectroscopic view of the pathological fea tures of Alzheimer's disease (AD), along with a means of classifying t he spectroscopic data nonsubjectively using several multivariate metho ds. The results demonstrate that IR spectroscopy can potentially be us ed in the diagnosis of AD from autopsy tissue. Although several spectr al features that appear to be related to the disease process can be de tected by a visual inspection of the IR spectra of AD grey matter, the appearance of these features was inconsistent. A more successful (con sistent) diagnosis is achieved using multivariate analysis of the spec troscopic data. It is shown that correct classification of white and g rey matter from brains identified by standard pathological methods as heavily, moderately, and minimally involved can be achieved with succe ss rates of greater than 90% using appropriate methods. Classification of tissue as either control or AD was achieved with a success rate of 100%. (C) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.