Differentiating maturational and aging-related changes of the cerebral cortex by use of thickness and signal intensity

Westlye, Lars T.; Walhovd, Kristine B.; Dale, Anders M.; Bjørnerud, Atle; Due‐Tønnessen, Paulina; Engvig, Andreas; Grydeland, Håkon; Tamnes, Christian K.; Østby, Ylva; Fjell, Anders M.

doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2010.03.056

Cited by 165 publications

(185 citation statements)

References 80 publications

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“…It should be noted that relatively late maturation in the lateral part of the primary motor cortex and small part of lingual gyrus is also seen during healthy adolescence and in adolescent-onset schizophrenia (38,39). We have previously found that adolescentonset schizophrenia exhibits an altered maturational pattern compared with matched healthy adolescents (38), with differences in M1, SMA, and lingual gyrus initially present at 16 y, and fading away 2.5 y later.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

A common brain network links development, aging, and vulnerability to disease

Douaud

Groves

Tamnes³

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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273

243

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Several theories link processes of development and aging in humans. In neuroscience, one model posits for instance that healthy agerelated brain degeneration mirrors development, with the areas of the brain thought to develop later also degenerating earlier. However, intrinsic evidence for such a link between healthy aging and development in brain structure remains elusive. Here, we show that a data-driven analysis of brain structural variation across 484 healthy participants (8-85 y) reveals a largely-but not only-transmodal network whose lifespan pattern of age-related change intrinsically supports this model of mirroring development and aging. We further demonstrate that this network of brain regions, which develops relatively late during adolescence and shows accelerated degeneration in old age compared with the rest of the brain, characterizes areas of heightened vulnerability to unhealthy developmental and aging processes, as exemplified by schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease, respectively. Specifically, this network, while derived solely from healthy subjects, spatially recapitulates the pattern of brain abnormalities observed in both schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. This network is further associated in our large-scale healthy population with intellectual ability and episodic memory, whose impairment contributes to key symptoms of schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. Taken together, our results suggest that the common spatial pattern of abnormalities observed in these two disorders, which emerge at opposite ends of the life spectrum, might be influenced by the timing of their separate and distinct pathological processes in disrupting healthy cerebral development and aging, respectively.M any phylogenetic or ontogenetic models attempt to relate development and aging at genetic, molecular, or cognitive systems levels (1-4). In neuroscience, one of the most popular hypotheses in this respect postulates that the process of healthy age-related brain decline mirrors developmental maturation. This concept was first introduced in 1881 as a "loi de régression" (Ribot's law) when Théodule Ribot, a French philosopher, observed that the destruction of memories progresses in reverse order to that of their formation: from the unstable to the stable, from the newly formed memories to older "sensory, instinctive" memories (5). More generally, this hypothesis postulates that the sequence of events associated with brain decline should present itself in reverse order to the series of events related to brain development, with brain regions thought to develop relatively late-at both ontogenetic and phylogenetic levels-also degenerating relatively early (2, 6, 7).One way of tracking this hypothesized mirroring pattern of development and aging in the human brain is to use the information provided at a macroscopic level by structural MRI in large-scale, lifespan human populations. Although structural MRI does not distinguish between the various cellular mechanisms underpinning development and aging processes [e.g., de...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 83%

A common brain network links development, aging, and vulnerability to disease

Douaud

Groves

Tamnes³

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

Self Cite

273

243

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Corrected significance clusters of GWC correlations with verbal test scores were mapped onto the inflated surface of the average brain reconstruction for visual display. Given prior reports of a relationship between age and GWC (Salat et al, 2009;Westlye et al, 2010), average GWC values for each significant cluster were extracted and regressed on raw uncorrected VCI and WMI index scores (sum of subtest raw scores) to assess the independent contribution of regional blurring to index score variation after partialing out age and sex effects.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual Differences in Verbal Abilities Associated with Regional Blurring of the Left Gray and White Matter Boundary

Blackmon¹,

Halgren²,

Barr³

et al. 2011

J. Neurosci.

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Blurring of the cortical gray and white matter border on MRI is associated with normal aging, pathological aging, and the presence of focal cortical dysplasia. However, it remains unclear whether normal variations in signal intensity contrast at the gray and white matter junction reflect the functional integrity of subjacent tissue. This study explores the relationship between verbal abilities and gray and white matter contrast (GWC) in healthy human adults. Participants were scanned at 3 T MRI and administered standardized measures of verbal expression and verbal working memory. GWC was estimated by calculating the non-normalized T1 image intensity contrast above and below the cortical gray/white matter interface. Spherical averaging and whole-brain correlational analyses were performed. Sulcal regions exhibited higher contrast compared to gyral regions. We found a strongly lateralized and regionally specific profile with reduced verbal expression abilities associated with blurring in left hemisphere inferior frontal cortex and temporal pole. Reduced verbal working memory was associated with blurring in widespread left frontal and temporal cortices. Such lateralized and focal results provide support for GWC as a measure of regional functional integrity and highlight its potential role in probing the neuroanatomical substrates of cognition in healthy and diseased populations.

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“…More recently, diffusivity parallel to the primary diffusion direction (axial diffusivity [AD]) and perpendicular to the primary diffusion direction (radial diffusivity [RD]) has also been explored. Cross-sectional studies have demonstrated that older adults display lower FA values and higher MD and RD values compared with younger adults (Head et al, 2004;Burzynska et al, 2010), with age correlations relatively weak during adulthood and stronger in senescence (Westlye et al, 2010a;Lebel et al, 2012). Spatially, results have been discussed within the context of several anatomical frameworks, and there is continued debate regarding the extent to which age-related changes are localized to the frontal lobe, follow posterior-to-anterior or inferior-to-superior gradients of lesser-to-greater vulnerability, or represent a selective deterioration of specific white matter tracts (Greenwood, 2000;Salat, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Second, we aim to examine the effect of age on annual change. Based on cross-sectional DTI data (Westlye et al, 2010a), as well as cognitive behavioral data (Nyberg et al, 2012), an acceleration of changes with age is expected. Anatomically, our main aim is to explore the extent to which changes follow posterior-to-anterior or inferior-to-superior gradients.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Accelerated Changes in White Matter Microstructure during Aging: A Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study

et al. 2014

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It is well established that human brain white matter structure changes with aging, but the timescale and spatial distribution of this change remain uncertain. Cross-sectional diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies indicate that, after a period of relative stability during adulthood, there is an accelerated decline in anisotropy and increase in diffusivity values during senescence; and, spatially, results have been discussed within the context of several anatomical frameworks. However, inferring trajectories of change from cross-sectional data can be challenging; and, as yet, there have been no longitudinal reports of the timescale and spatial distribution of age-related white matter change in healthy adults across the adult lifespan. In a longitudinal DTI study of 203 adults between 20 and 84 years of age, we used tract-based spatial statistics to characterize the pattern of annual change in fractional anisotropy, axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and mean diffusivity and examined whether there was an acceleration of change with age. We found extensive and overlapping significant annual decreases in fractional anisotropy, and increases in axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and mean diffusivity. Spatially, results were consistent with inferior-to-superior gradients of lesser-to-greater vulnerability. Annual change increased with age, particularly within superior regions, with age-related decline estimated to begin in the fifth decade. Charting white matter microstructural changes in healthy aging provides essential context to clinical studies, and future studies should compare age trajectories between healthy participants and at-risk populations and also explore the relationship between DTI rates of change and cognitive decline.

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Differentiating maturational and aging-related changes of the cerebral cortex by use of thickness and signal intensity

Cited by 165 publications

References 80 publications

A common brain network links development, aging, and vulnerability to disease

A common brain network links development, aging, and vulnerability to disease

Individual Differences in Verbal Abilities Associated with Regional Blurring of the Left Gray and White Matter Boundary

Accelerated Changes in White Matter Microstructure during Aging: A Longitudinal Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study

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