Abstract
BackgroundAge-related decline in cognitive function, such as executive function, is associated with structural changes in the neural substrates, such as volume reductions in the lateral prefrontal cortex. To prevent or delay age-related changes in cognitive function, cognitive intervention methods that employ social activity, including conversations, have been proposed in some intervention studies. Interestingly, previous studies have consistently reported that verbal fluency ability can be trained by conversation-based interventions in healthy older adults. However, little is known about the neural substrates that underlie the beneficial effect of conversation-based interventions on cognitive function. In this pilot study, we aimed to provide candidate brain regions that are responsible for the enhancement of cognitive function, by analyzing structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data that were additionally obtained from participants in our previous intervention study.MethodsA voxel-based morphometric analysis was applied to the structural MRI data. In the analysis, the regional brain volume was compared between the intervention group, who participated in a group conversation-based intervention program named Photo-Integrated Conversation Moderated by Robots (PICMOR), and the control group, who joined in a control program based on unstructured free conversations. Furthermore, regions whose volume was positively correlated with an increase in verbal fluency task scores throughout the intervention period were explored.ResultsResults showed that the volume of several regions, including the superior frontal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus/hippocampus, posterior middle temporal gyrus, and postcentral gyrus, was greater in the intervention group than in the control group. In contrast, no regions showed greater volume in the control group than in the intervention group. The region whose volume showed a positive correlation with the increased task scores was identified in the inferior parietal lobule.ConclusionsAlthough definitive conclusions cannot be drawn from this study due to a lack of MRI data from the pre-intervention period, it achieved the exploratory purpose by successfully identifying candidate brain regions that reflect the beneficial effect of conversation-based interventions on cognitive function, including the lateral prefrontal cortex, which plays an important role in executive functions.Trial registrationThe trial was retrospectively registered on 7 May 2019 (UMIN Clinical Trials Registry number: UMIN000036667).
Highlights
Age-related decline in cognitive function, such as executive function, is associated with structural changes in the neural substrates, such as volume reductions in the lateral prefrontal cortex
We cannot fully attribute any possible differences to the effects of Photo-Integrated Conversation Moderated by Robots (PICMOR) because of a lack of comparisons with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from the pre-intervention period, we aimed to identify candidate brain regions that reflect the beneficial effect of conversation-based interventions on brain structures for future research
Results from the regression analysis revealed that the volume of the right inferior parietal lobule was positively correlated with the increased verbal fluency task scores throughout the intervention period (x = 45, y = − 53, z = 51, BA 40, 78 voxels, Z value = 3.67)
Summary
Age-related decline in cognitive function, such as executive function, is associated with structural changes in the neural substrates, such as volume reductions in the lateral prefrontal cortex. Little is known about the neural substrates that underlie the beneficial effect of conversation-based interventions on cogni‐ tive function In this pilot study, we aimed to provide candidate brain regions that are responsible for the enhance‐ ment of cognitive function, by analyzing structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data that were obtained from participants in our previous intervention study. This pilot study aimed to provide candidate brain regions associated with the enhancement of cognitive function, by collecting structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data from participants in our previous intervention study [25] and comparing the regional brain volume between the intervention and control groups
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