Dataset Information

Adolescent Tuning of Association Cortex in Human Structural Brain Networks.

ABSTRACT: Motivated by prior data on local cortical shrinkage and intracortical myelination, we predicted age-related changes in topological organization of cortical structural networks during adolescence. We estimated structural correlation from magnetic resonance imaging measures of cortical thickness at 308 regions in a sample of N = 297 healthy participants, aged 14-24 years. We used a novel sliding-window analysis to measure age-related changes in network attributes globally, locally and in the context of several community partitions of the network. We found that the strength of structural correlation generally decreased as a function of age. Association cortical regions demonstrated a sharp decrease in nodal degree (hubness) from 14 years, reaching a minimum at approximately 19 years, and then levelling off or even slightly increasing until 24 years. Greater and more prolonged age-related changes in degree of cortical regions within the brain network were associated with faster rates of adolescent cortical myelination and shrinkage. The brain regions that demonstrated the greatest age-related changes were concentrated within prefrontal modules. We conclude that human adolescence is associated with biologically plausible changes in structural imaging markers of brain network organization, consistent with the concept of tuning or consolidating anatomical connectivity between frontal cortex and the rest of the connectome.

SUBMITTER: Vasa F

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5903415 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Adolescent Tuning of Association Cortex in Human Structural Brain Networks.

Váša František F Seidlitz Jakob J Romero-Garcia Rafael R Whitaker Kirstie J KJ Rosenthal Gideon G Vértes Petra E PE Shinn Maxwell M Alexander-Bloch Aaron A Fonagy Peter P Dolan Raymond J RJ Jones Peter B PB Goodyer Ian M IM Sporns Olaf O Bullmore Edward T ET

Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) 20180101 1

Motivated by prior data on local cortical shrinkage and intracortical myelination, we predicted age-related changes in topological organization of cortical structural networks during adolescence. We estimated structural correlation from magnetic resonance imaging measures of cortical thickness at 308 regions in a sample of N = 297 healthy participants, aged 14-24 years. We used a novel sliding-window analysis to measure age-related changes in network attributes globally, locally and in the conte ...[more]

PMID: 29088339

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Project description:ImportanceChanges in estradiol during aging are associated with increased dementia risk. It remains unclear how estradiol supports cognitive health and whether risk factors, such as midlife obesity, are exacerbated by estrogen loss.ObjectivesTo assess whether visceral adipose tissue (VAT) moderates the association between age and brain network structure and to investigate whether estradiol moderates the association between VAT and brain network structure.Design, setting, and participantsCross-sectional study of data from 974 cognitively healthy adults in Germany who participated in the Health Study of the Leipzig Research Centre for Civilization Diseases, a previously described population-based cohort study. Two moderation analyses were performed, including VAT as the moderator variable between age and brain network structure and estradiol as the moderator variable between VAT and brain network structure. The study was conducted from August 1, 2011, to November 23, 2014. Analyses were conducted from August 2017 to September 2018.ExposuresSerum estradiol levels from fasting blood and visceral adipose tissue volume from T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).Main outcomes and measuresBrain network covariance (individual loading on structural network derived from T1-weighted MRI) and memory performance (composite score from the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer Disease [CERAD] verbal episodic memory test on learning [score range, 0-30], recall [score range, 0-10], and recognition [score range, 0-20]).ResultsFinal analyses included data from 473 women (mean [SD] age, 50.10 [15.63] years) and 501 men (mean [SD] age, 51.24 [15.67] years). Visceral adipose tissue was associated with an exacerbation of the negative association of aging with network covariance for women (interaction term β = -0.02; 95% bias-corrected bootstrap CI, -0.03 to -0.01; P = .001) and men (interaction term β = -0.02; 95% bias-corrected bootstrap CI, -0.03 to -0.01; P < .001). Estradiol level was associated with a reduction in the negative association of VAT with network covariance in women (interaction term β = 0.63; 95% bias-corrected bootstrap CI, 0.14-1.12; P = .01), with no significant association in men. In the female midlife subgroup (age range, 35-55 years, when menopause transition occurs), low estradiol levels were associated with lower memory network covariance (Cohen d = 0.61; t80 = 2.76; P = .007) and worse memory performance (Cohen d = 0.63; t76 = 2.76; P = .007).Conclusions and relevanceThis study reports a novel association between VAT, estradiol, and structural brain networks as a potential mechanism underlying cognitive decline in women. These findings appear to highlight the need for sex-specific strategies, including VAT and hormonal screening during midlife, to support healthy cognitive aging.

Dataset Information

Adolescent Tuning of Association Cortex in Human Structural Brain Networks.

Publications

Adolescent Tuning of Association Cortex in Human Structural Brain Networks.

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