Blood-brain barrier permeability measured with arterial spin labeling as potential cerebrovascular biomarker over the lifespan

Blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction is considered a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), making non-invasive imaging of BBB with arterial spin labeling (ASL) MRI a potential imaging biomarker (BBB-ASL). However, the normal BBB development over the lifespan is unknown. Here, we created population-based BBB-ASL permeability reference maps, and aimed to investigate associations between BBB-ASL, chronological age, and biological cerebrovascular age – expressed as white matter hyperintensities (WMH) volume