Dataset Information

White matter and memory in healthy adults: Coupled changes over two years.

ABSTRACT: Numerous cross-sectional studies have used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to link age-related differences in white matter (WM) anisotropy and concomitant decrements in cognitive ability. Due to a dearth of longitudinal evidence, the relationship between changes in diffusion properties of WM and cognitive performance remains unclear. Here we examine the relationship between two-year changes in WM organization and cognitive performance in healthy adults (N=96, age range at baseline=18-79 years). We used latent change score models (LCSM) to evaluate changes in age-sensitive cognitive abilities - fluid intelligence and associative memory. WM changes were assessed by fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) in WM regions that are considered part of established memory networks and exhibited individual differences in change. In modeling change, we postulated reciprocal paths between baseline measures and change factors, within and between WM and cognition domains, and accounted for individual differences in baseline age. Although baseline cross-sectional memory performance was positively associated with FA and negatively with RD, longitudinal effects told an altogether different story. Independent of age, longitudinal improvements in associative memory were significantly associated with linear reductions in FA and increases in RD. The present findings demonstrate the sensitivity of DTI-derived indices to changes in the brain and cognition and affirm the importance of longitudinal models for evaluating brain-cognition relations.

SUBMITTER: Bender AR

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4848116 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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White matter and memory in healthy adults: Coupled changes over two years.

Bender Andrew R AR Prindle John J JJ Brandmaier Andreas M AM Raz Naftali N

NeuroImage 20151103

Numerous cross-sectional studies have used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to link age-related differences in white matter (WM) anisotropy and concomitant decrements in cognitive ability. Due to a dearth of longitudinal evidence, the relationship between changes in diffusion properties of WM and cognitive performance remains unclear. Here we examine the relationship between two-year changes in WM organization and cognitive performance in healthy adults (N=96, age range at baseline=18-79 years). W ...[more]

PMID: 26545457

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Project description:Recent evidence demonstrates that age and disease-related decline in cognition depends not only upon degeneration in brain structure and function, but also on dietary intake and nutritional status. Memory, a potential preclinical marker of Alzheimer's disease, is supported by white matter integrity in the brain and dietary patterns high in omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. However, the extent to which memory is supported by specific omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids, and the degree to which this relationship is reliant upon microstructure of particular white matter regions is not known. This study therefore examined the cross-sectional relationship between empirically-derived patterns of omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (represented by nutrient biomarker patterns), memory, and regional white matter microstructure in healthy, older adults. We measured thirteen plasma phospholipid omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids, memory, and regional white matter microstructure in 94 cognitively intact older adults (65 to 75 years old). A three-step mediation analysis was implemented using multivariate linear regressions, adjusted for age, gender, education, income, depression status, and body mass index. The mediation analysis revealed that a mixture of plasma phospholipid omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids is linked to memory and that white matter microstructure of the fornix fully mediates the relationship between this pattern of plasma phospholipid polyunsaturated fatty acids and memory. These results suggest that memory may be optimally supported by a balance of plasma phospholipid omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids through the preservation of fornix white matter microstructure in cognitively intact older adults. This report provides novel evidence for the benefits of plasma phospholipid omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid balance on memory and underlying white matter microstructure.

Dataset Information

White matter and memory in healthy adults: Coupled changes over two years.

Publications

White matter and memory in healthy adults: Coupled changes over two years.

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