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Fluctuating asymmetry in brain structure and general intelligence in 73-year-olds.

ABSTRACT: Fluctuating body asymmetry is theorized to indicate developmental instability, and to have small positive associations with low socioeconomic status (SES). Previous studies have reported small negative associations between fluctuating body asymmetry and cognitive functioning, but relationships between fluctuating brain asymmetry and cognitive functioning remain unclear. The present study investigated the association between general intelligence (a latent factor derived from a factor analysis on 13 cognitive tests) and the fluctuating asymmetry of four structural measures of brain hemispheric asymmetry: cortical surface area, cortical volume, cortical thickness, and white matter fractional anisotropy. The sample comprised members of the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 (LBC1936, N = 636, mean age = 72.9 years). Two methods were used to calculate structural hemispheric asymmetry: in the first method, regions contributed equally to the overall asymmetry score; in the second method, regions contributed proportionally to their size. When regions contributed equally, cortical thickness asymmetry was negatively associated with general intelligence (β = -0.18,p < .001). There was no association between cortical thickness asymmetry and childhood SES, suggesting that other mechanisms are involved in the thickness asymmetry-intelligence association. Across all cortical metrics, asymmetry of regions identified by the parieto-frontal integration theory (P-FIT) was not more strongly associated with general intelligence than non-P-FIT asymmetry. When regions contributed proportionally, there were no associations between general intelligence and any of the asymmetry measures. The implications of these findings, and of different methods of calculating structural hemispheric asymmetry, are discussed.

SUBMITTER: Moodie JE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6961972 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:BACKGROUND: Despite the large number of parenting questionnaires, considerable disagreement exists about how to best assess parenting. Most of the instruments only assess limited aspects of parenting. To overcome this shortcoming, the "Comprehensive General Parenting Questionnaire" (CGPQ) was systematically developed. Such a measure is frequently requested in the area of childhood overweight. METHODS: First, an item bank of existing parenting measures was created assessing five key parenting constructs that have been identified across multiple theoretical approaches to parenting (Nurturance, Overprotection, Coercive control, Behavioral control, and Structure). Caregivers of 5- to 13-year-olds were asked to complete the online survey in the Netherlands (N?=?821), Belgium (N?=?435) and the United States (N?=?241). In addition, a questionnaire regarding personality characteristics ("Big Five") of the caregiver was administered and parents were asked to report about their child's height and weight. Factor analyses and Item-Response Modeling (IRM) techniques were used to assess the underlying parenting constructs and for item reduction. Correlation analyses were performed to assess the relations between general parenting and personality of the caregivers, adjusting for socio-economic status (SES) indicators, to establish criterion validity. Multivariate linear regressions were performed to examine the associations of SES indicators and parenting with child BMI z-scores. Additionally, we assessed whether scores on the parenting constructs and child BMI z-scores differed depending on SES indicators. RESULTS: The reduced questionnaire (62 items) revealed acceptable fit of our parenting model and acceptable IRM item fit statistics. Caregiver personality was related as hypothesized with the GCPQ parenting constructs. While correcting for SES, overprotection was positively related to child BMI. The negative relationship between structure and BMI was borderline significant. Parents with a high level of education were less likely to use overly forms of controlling parenting (i.e., coercive control and overprotection) and more likely to have children with lower BMI. Based on several author review meetings and cognitive interviews the questionnaire was further modified to an 85-item questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: The GCPQ may facilitate research exploring how parenting influences children's weight-related behaviors. The contextual influence of general parenting is likely to be more profound than its direct relationship with weight status.

Project description:Fluctuating asymmetry (random fluctuations between the left and right sides of the body) has been interpreted as an index to quantify both the developmental instabilities and homeostatic capabilities of organisms, linking the phenotypic and genotypic aspects of morphogenesis. However, studying the ontogenesis of fluctuating asymmetry has been limited to mostly model organisms in postnatal stages, missing prenatal trajectories of asymmetry that could better elucidate decoupled developmental pathways controlling symmetric bone elongation and thickening. In this study, we quantified the presence and magnitude of asymmetry during the prenatal development of bats, focusing on the humerus, a highly specialized bone adapted in bats to perform under multiple functional demands. We deconstructed levels of asymmetry by measuring the longitudinal and cross-sectional asymmetry of the humerus using a combination of linear measurements and geometric morphometrics. We tested the presence of different types of asymmetry and calculated the magnitude of size-controlled fluctuating asymmetry to assess developmental instability. Statistical support for the presence of fluctuating asymmetry was found for both longitudinal and cross-sectional asymmetry, explaining on average 16% of asymmetric variation. Significant directional asymmetry accounted for less than 6.6% of asymmetric variation. Both measures of fluctuating asymmetry remained relatively stable throughout ontogeny, but cross-sectional asymmetry was significantly different across developmental stages. Finally, we did not find a correspondence between developmental patterns of longitudinal and cross-sectional asymmetry, indicating that processes promoting symmetrical bone elongation and thickening work independently. We suggest various functional pressures linked to newborn bats' ecology associated with longitudinal (altricial flight capabilities) and cross-sectional (precocial clinging ability) developmental asymmetry differentially. We hypothesize that stable magnitudes of fluctuating asymmetry across development could indicate the presence of developmental mechanisms buffering developmental instability.

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Fluctuating asymmetry in brain structure and general intelligence in 73-year-olds.

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