Dataset Information

Decline Variability of Cortical and Subcortical Regions in Aging: A Longitudinal Study.

ABSTRACT: Describing the trajectories of age-related change for different brain structures has been of interest in many recent studies. However, our knowledge regarding these trajectories and their associations is still limited due to small sample sizes and low numbers of repeated measures. For the present study, we used a large longitudinal dataset (four measurements over 4 years) comprising anatomical data from a sample of healthy older adults (N = 231 at baseline). This dataset enables us to gain new insights about volumetric cortical and subcortical changes and their associations in the context of healthy aging. Brain structure volumes were derived from T1-weighted MRI scans using FreeSurfer segmentation tools. Brain structure trajectories were fitted using mixed models and latent growth curve models to gain information about the mean extent and variability of decline trajectories for different brain structures as well as the associations between individual trajectories. On the group level, our analyses indicate similar linear changes for frontal and parietal brain regions, while medial temporal regions showed an accelerated decline with advancing age. Regarding subcortical regions, some structures showed strong declines (e.g., hippocampus), others showed little decline (e.g., pallidum). Our data provide little evidence for sex differences regarding the aforementioned trajectories. Between-person variability of the person-specific slopes (random slopes) was largest in subcortical and medial temporal brain structures. When looking at the associations between the random slopes from each brain structure, we found that the decline is largely homogenous across the majority of cortical brain structures. In subcortical and medial temporal brain structures, however, more heterogeneity of the decline was observed, meaning that the extent of the decline in one structure is less predictive of the decline in another structure. Taken together, our study contributes to enhancing our understanding of structural brain aging by demonstrating (1) that average volumetric change differs across the brain and (2) that there are regional differences with respect to between-person variability in the slopes. Moreover, our data suggest (3) that random slopes are highly correlated across large parts of the cerebral cortex but (4) that some brain regions (i.e., medial temporal regions) deviate from this homogeneity.

SUBMITTER: Sele S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7500514 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Decline Variability of Cortical and Subcortical Regions in Aging: A Longitudinal Study.

Sele Silvano S Liem Franziskus F Mérillat Susan S Jäncke Lutz L

Frontiers in human neuroscience 20200904

Describing the trajectories of age-related change for different brain structures has been of interest in many recent studies. However, our knowledge regarding these trajectories and their associations is still limited due to small sample sizes and low numbers of repeated measures. For the present study, we used a large longitudinal dataset (four measurements over 4 years) comprising anatomical data from a sample of healthy older adults (<i>N</i> = 231 at baseline). This dataset enables us to gai ...[more]

PMID: 33100991

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Project description:BackgroundThere is an increasing awareness that sleep disturbances are a risk factor for dementia. Prior case-control studies suggested that brain grey matter (GM) changes involving cortical (i.e, prefrontal areas) and subcortical structures (i.e, putamen, thalamus) could be associated with insomnia status. However, it remains unclear whether there is a gradient association between these regions and the severity of insomnia in older adults who could be at risk for dementia. Since depressive symptoms and sleep apnea can both feature insomnia-related factors, can impact brain health and are frequently present in older populations, it is important to include them when studying insomnia. Therefore, our goal was to investigate GM changes associated with insomnia severity in a cohort of healthy older adults, taking into account the potential effect of depression and sleep apnea as well. We hypothesized that insomnia severity is correlated with 1) cortical regions responsible for regulation of sleep and emotion, such as the orbitofrontal cortex and, 2) subcortical regions, such as the putamen.Methods120 healthy subjects (age 74.8±5.7 years old, 55.7% female) were recruited from the Hillblom Healthy Aging Network at the Memory and Aging Center, UCSF. All participants were determined to be cognitively healthy following a neurological evaluation, neuropsychological assessment and informant interview. Participants had a 3T brain MRI and completed the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and Berlin Sleep Questionnaire (BA) to assess sleep apnea. Cortical thickness (CTh) and subcortical volumes were obtained by the CAT12 toolbox within SPM12. We studied the correlation of CTh and subcortical volumes with ISI using multiple regressions adjusted by age, sex, handedness and MRI scan type. Additional models adjusting by GDS and BA were also performed.ResultsISI and GDS were predominantly mild (4.9±4.2 and 2.5±2.9, respectively) and BA was mostly low risk (80%). Higher ISI correlated with lower CTh of the right orbitofrontal, right superior and caudal middle frontal areas, right temporo-parietal junction and left anterior cingulate cortex (p<0.001, uncorrected FWE). When adjusting by GDS, right ventral orbitofrontal and temporo-parietal junction remained significant, and left insula became significant (p<0.001, uncorrected FWE). Conversely, BA showed no effect. The results were no longer significant following FWE multiple comparisons. Regarding subcortical areas, higher putamen volumes were associated with higher ISI (p<0.01).ConclusionsOur findings highlight a relationship between insomnia severity and brain health, even with relatively mild insomnia, and independent of depression and likelihood of sleep apnea. The results extend the previous literature showing the association of specific GM areas (i.e, orbitofrontal, insular and temporo-parietal junction) not just with the presence of insomnia, but across the spectrum of severity itself. Moreover, our results suggest subcortical structures (i.e., putamen) are involved as well. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify how these insomnia-related brain changes in healthy subjects align with an increased risk of dementia.

Project description:Purpose To evaluate whether patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1)-a multisystem neurodevelopmental disorder with myriad imaging manifestations, including focal transient myelin vacuolization within the deep gray nuclei, brainstem, and cerebellum-exhibit differences in cortical and subcortical structures, particularly in subcortical regions where these abnormalities manifest. Materials and Methods In this retrospective study, by using clinically obtained three-dimensional T1-weighted MR images and established image analysis methods, 10 intracranial volume-corrected subcortical and 34 cortical regions of interest (ROIs) were quantitatively assessed in 32 patients with NF1 and 245 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects. By using linear models, ROI cortical thicknesses and volumes were compared between patients with NF1 and control subjects, as a function of age. With hierarchic cluster analysis and partial correlations, differences in the pattern of association between cortical and subcortical ROI volumes in patients with NF1 and control subjects were also evaluated. Results Patients with NF1 exhibited larger subcortical volumes and thicker cortices of select regions, particularly the hippocampi, amygdalae, cerebellar white matter, ventral diencephalon, thalami, and occipital cortices. For the thalami and pallida and 22 cortical ROIs in patients with NF1, a significant inverse association between volume and age was found, suggesting that volumes decrease with increasing age. Moreover, compared with those in control subjects, ROIs in patients with NF1 exhibited a distinct pattern of clustering and partial correlations. Discussion Neurofibromatosis type 1 is characterized by larger subcortical volumes and thicker cortices of select structures. Most apparent within the hippocampi, amygdalae, cerebellar white matter, ventral diencephalon, thalami and occipital cortices, these neurofibromatosis type 1-associated volumetric changes may, in part, be age dependent. © RSNA, 2018 Online supplemental material is available for this article.

Dataset Information

Decline Variability of Cortical and Subcortical Regions in Aging: A Longitudinal Study.

Publications

Decline Variability of Cortical and Subcortical Regions in Aging: A Longitudinal Study.

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