Cerebral Abnormalities in Friedreich Ataxia: A Review

Louisa P. Selvadurai, Ian H. Harding, Louise A. Corben, Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis, Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, Available online 18 August 2017, ISSN 0149-7634, doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.08.006.

However, cerebral abnormalities in FRDA are being increasingly documented via multiple neuroimaging techniques. Understanding the nature and implications of cerebral abnormalities in FRDA provides more comprehensive knowledge of nervous system involvement in this disorder and increases the prospects of identifying effective treatment targets. We review the cerebellar and the cerebral involvement with a focus on the emerging in vivo human neuroimaging findings suggesting wide-spread cerebral involvement, including aberrant cerebellar-cerebral connectivity. We synthesise the findings by proposing potential mechanisms that may drive these effects. Finally, we identify future research directions which, we argue, will lead to a better understanding of the extent and potential mechanisms of cerebral aberrations in FRDA.