Minute Effects of Sex on the Aging Brain: A Multisample Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Healthy Aging and Alzheimer's Disease

Fjell, Anders M.; Westlye, Lars T.; Amlien, Inge K.; Espeseth, Thomas; Reinvang, Ivar; Raz, Naftali; Agartz, Ingrid; Salat, David H.; Greve, Doug; Fischl, Bruce; Dale, Anders M.; Walhovd, Kristine B.

doi:10.1523/jneurosci.0115-09.2009

Cited by 120 publications

(125 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…The cortical thickness showed a minimal difference in the GM/WM ratio between the men and women in each age group (3). The effect of gender on the age-related changes of the brain structure was negligible on the age slope of the brain volumes both in healthy individuals and in individuals with Alzheimer dementia (11). In our study, any gender differences in the TRGW and SRGW were not evident.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 65%

The Age-related Microstructural Changes of the Cortical Gray and White Matter Ratios on T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted MR Images

Choi

Kim

Lee

et al. 2011

J Korean Soc Magn Reson Med

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Purpose : The purpose of this study was to investigate the microstructural changes according to aging on the thickness and signal intensity (SI) of the cortical gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) on the T2-, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) and T1-weighted MR images in normal subjects. Materials and Methods : The 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 and 90 year age groups of men and women (each 10 individuals) who underwent routine brain MRI, including the T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted images, were selected for this study. We measured the thickness and the SI of the cortical GM and WM at the postcentral gyrus, which has an even thickness at the level of centrum semiovale, on the axial scans and we calculated the mean values of the thickness ratio of the gray/white matter (TRGW) and the signal intensity ratio of the gray/white matter (SRGW), and we compared the ratios of each age group. Results : On the T2-weighted images, the TRGWs were 0.81 and 0.79 at the age of 10 and they were 0.73 and 0.71 at the age of 90 in the men and women, respectively. So, the GM thickness was decreased more than the WM thickness was with aging. On the FLAIR images, the TRGWs were 1.09 and 1.00 at the age of 10 and they were 1.11 and 0.95 at the age of 70 in the men and women, respectively. On the T1-weighted images, the TRGWs were 0.66 and 0.80 at the age of 10, and the ratio was changed to 0.90 and 0.78 at the age of 90 in the men and women, respectively. On the T2-weighted image, the SRGWs were 1.53 and 1.43 at the age of 10, and they were 1.23 and 1.27 at the age of 90 in the men and women, respectively. On the FLAIR images, the SRGWs were 1.23 and 1.25 at the age of 10 and they were 1.06 and 1.05 at the age of 90 in the men and women, respectively. On the T1-weighted images, the SRGWs were 0.86 and 0.85 at the age of 10, and they were 0.90 and 0.87 at the age of 90 in the men and women, respectively. Conclusion : We suggest that the age-related microstructural changes of the thickness and the SI of the cortical GM and WM on the T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted images are unique, and so this knowledge will be helpful to differentiate neurodegenerative disease from normal aging of the brain.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 65%

The Age-related Microstructural Changes of the Cortical Gray and White Matter Ratios on T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted MR Images

Choi

Kim

Lee

et al. 2011

J Korean Soc Magn Reson Med

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“…Regional cortical thickness differences between men and women have been found by some (Luders et al, 2006;Sowell et al, 2007), but not all investigations (Fjell et al, 2009b) of healthy adults. We have found no effect of sex differences on regional cortical thickness in any of the present subject groups.…”

Section: Other Confounding Factorsmentioning

confidence: 95%

Investigating relationships between cortical thickness and cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia and healthy adults

Hartberg

Lawyer

Nyman

et al. 2010

Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging

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“…Although neuroscientists understand that structural and functional brain differences can be induced by experience and neuroplasticity (Fine et al, 2013), many nonetheless default to speculation about gonadal hormones and evolution whenever they uncover sex/gender differences (Eliot, 2011;Maney, 2015). The mandate to study biological sex difference in animal studies, without an accompanying focus on sociocultural determinants of neurobehavioral sex/gender differences, will only add to this interpretive bias.…”

Section: Potential Harms Of the Mandatementioning

confidence: 99%

Sex in Context: Limitations of Animal Studies for Addressing Human Sex/Gender Neurobehavioral Health Disparities

Eliot

Richardson

2016

J. Neurosci.

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Many brain and behavioral disorders differentially affect men and women.The new National Institutes of Health requirement to include both male and female animals in preclinical studies aims to address such health disparities, but we argue that the mandate is not the best solution to this problem. Sex differences are highly species-specific, tied to the mating system and social ecology of a given species or even strain of animal. In many cases, animals poorly replicate male-female differences in brain-related human diseases. Sex/gender disparities in human health have a strong sociocultural component that is intimately entangled with biological sex and challenging to model in animals. We support research that investigates sex-related variables in hypothesis-driven studies of animal brains and behavior. However, institutional policies that require sex analysis and give it special salience over other sources of biological variance can distort research. We caution that the costly imposition of sex analysis on nearly all animal research entrenches the presumption that human brain and behavioral differences are largely biological in origin and overlooks the potentially more powerful social, psychological, and cultural contributors to male-female neurobehavioral health gaps.

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Minute Effects of Sex on the Aging Brain: A Multisample Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Healthy Aging and Alzheimer's Disease

Cited by 120 publications

References 73 publications

The Age-related Microstructural Changes of the Cortical Gray and White Matter Ratios on T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted MR Images

The Age-related Microstructural Changes of the Cortical Gray and White Matter Ratios on T2-, FLAIR and T1-weighted MR Images

Investigating relationships between cortical thickness and cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia and healthy adults

Sex in Context: Limitations of Animal Studies for Addressing Human Sex/Gender Neurobehavioral Health Disparities

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