Tuokkola T, Karrasch M, Koikkalainen J, et al. – Researchers investigated degenerative deep gray matter (DGM) changes and assessed their association with neurocognitive functions in this tensor-based morphometric MRI study. They evaluated DGM volume changes using tensor-based morphometry (TBM), and analyzed the relationships between DGM changes and neurocognitive functions in 58 controls, 38 participants with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 58 participants with Alzheimer disease (AD) via multiple linear regression analyses. Participants with AD demonstrated the greatest changes in TBM volume across all DGM areas. Furthermore, differences in TBM volume changes were greatest between controls and those with AD than any other grouping. Among participants with AD, volume changes of the right thalamus were significantly correlated with episodic memory, learning, and semantic processing. Among controls and those with MCI, very few significant associations were identified. Overall, atrophy of the DGM structures—particularly the thalamus and caudate nucleus—may be related to cognitive impairment in AD.