Dataset Information

Low cortical iron and high entorhinal cortex volume promote cognitive functioning in the oldest-old.

ABSTRACT: The aging brain is characterized by an increased presence of neurodegenerative and vascular pathologies. However, there is substantial variation regarding the relationship between an individual's pathological burden and resulting cognitive impairment. To identify correlates of preserved cognitive functioning at highest age, the relationship between ?-amyloid plaque load, presence of small vessel cerebrovascular disease (SVCD), iron-burden, and brain atrophy was investigated. Eighty cognitively unimpaired participants (44 oldest-old, aged 85-96 years; 36 younger-old, aged 55-80 years) were scanned by integrated positron emission tomography-magnetic resonance imaging for assessing beta regional amyloid plaque load (18F-flutemetamol), white matter hyperintensities as an indicator of SVCD (fluid-attenuated inversion recovery-magnetic resonance imaging), and iron load (quantitative susceptibility mapping). For the oldest-old group, lower cortical volume, increased ?-amyloid plaque load, prevalence of SVCD, and lower cognitive performance in the normal range were found. However, compared to normal-old, cortical iron burden was lower in the oldest-old. Moreover, only in the oldest-old, entorhinal cortex volume positively correlated with ?-amyloid plaque load. Our data thus indicate that the co-occurrence of aging-associated neuropathologies with reduced quantitative susceptibility mapping measures of cortical iron load constitutes a lower vulnerability to cognitive loss.

SUBMITTER: van Bergen JMG

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5820223 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Low cortical iron and high entorhinal cortex volume promote cognitive functioning in the oldest-old.

van Bergen Jiri M G JMG Li Xu X Quevenco Frances C FC Gietl Anton F AF Treyer Valerie V Leh Sandra E SE Meyer Rafael R Buck Alfred A Kaufmann Philipp A PA Nitsch Roger M RM van Zijl Peter C M PCM Hock Christoph C Unschuld Paul G PG

Neurobiology of aging 20171220

The aging brain is characterized by an increased presence of neurodegenerative and vascular pathologies. However, there is substantial variation regarding the relationship between an individual's pathological burden and resulting cognitive impairment. To identify correlates of preserved cognitive functioning at highest age, the relationship between β-amyloid plaque load, presence of small vessel cerebrovascular disease (SVCD), iron-burden, and brain atrophy was investigated. Eighty cognitively u ...[more]

PMID: 29351872

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundThe oldest-old (those aged ≥80 years) are the most rapidly growing age group globally, and are most in need of health care and assistance. We aimed to assess changes in mortality, disability in activities of daily living, and physical and cognitive functioning among oldest-old individuals between 1998 and 2008.MethodsWe used data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Study. Three pairs of cohorts aged 80-89 years, 90-99 years, and 100-105 years (in total, 19 528 oldest-old participants) were examined; the two cohorts in each pair were born 10 years apart, with the same age at the time of the assessment in the 1998 and 2008 surveys. Four health outcomes were investigated: annual death rate, Activities of Daily Living (ADL), physical performance in three tests and cognitive function measured by Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). We used different tests and multivariate regression analyses to examine the cohort differences.FindingsControlling for various confounding factors, we noted that annual mortality among oldest-old individuals was substantially reduced between 0·2% and 1·3% in 1998-2008 compared with individuals of the same age born 10 years previously, and that disability according to activities of daily living had significantly reduced annually between 0·8% and 2·8%. However, cognitive impairment in the later cohorts increased annually between 0·7% and 2·2% and objective physical performance capacity (standing up from a chair, picking up a book from the floor, and turning around 360°) decreased anually between 0·4% and 3·8%. We also noted that female mortality was substantially lower than male mortality among the oldest-old, but that women's functional capacities in activities of daily living, cognition, and physical performance were worse than their male counterparts.InterpretationAdvances in medications, lifestyle, and socioeconomics might compress activities of daily living disability, that is, benefits of success, but lifespan extension might expand disability of physical and cognitive functioning as more frail, elderly individuals survive with health problems, that is, costs of success.FundingNational Natural Science Foundation of China, National Institute on Aging/National Institutes of Health, United Nations Funds for Population Activities.

Dataset Information

Low cortical iron and high entorhinal cortex volume promote cognitive functioning in the oldest-old.

Publications

Low cortical iron and high entorhinal cortex volume promote cognitive functioning in the oldest-old.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets