Abstract
Brain tissue deterioration is a significant contributor to lower cognitive ability in later life; however, few studies have appropriate data to establish how much influence prior brain volume and prior cognitive performance have on this association. We investigated the associations between structural brain imaging biomarkers, including an estimate of maximal brain volume, and detailed measures of cognitive ability at age 73 years in a large (N = 620), generally healthy, community-dwelling population. Cognitive ability data were available from age 11 years. We found positive associations (r) between general cognitive ability and estimated brain volume in youth (male, 0.28; females, 0.12), and in measured brain volume in later life (males, 0.27; females, 0.26). Our findings show that cognitive ability in youth is a strong predictor of estimated prior and measured current brain volume in old age but that these effects were the same for both white and gray matter. As 1 of the largest studies of associations between brain volume and cognitive ability with normal aging, this work contributes to the wider understanding of how some early-life factors influence cognitive aging.
Highlights
As individuals age, some degree of decline is typically observed in the mean test scores of cognitive abilities such as reasoning, memory, processing speed, and spatial ability (Ghisletta et al, 2012; Salthouse, 2010)
Studies have shown that there are direct links between reduction in brain tissue volume and cognitive decline (Sluimer et al, 2008), that decline in brain tissue volume and increased cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) longitudinally are associated with lower cognitive performance (Cardenas et al, 2011), and that tissue loss is accelerated in individuals with mild cognitive impairment compared with the normal decline with aging (Driscoll et al, 2009)
The current findings suggest that cognitive ability at age 73 years is dependent, in part, on prior cognitive ability, prior or maximal brain size, and current brain tissue volume
Summary
Some degree of decline is typically observed in the mean test scores of cognitive abilities such as reasoning, memory, processing speed, and spatial ability (Ghisletta et al, 2012; Salthouse, 2010). A review by Plassman et al (2010) found that, there was evidence for other factors, health problems, negative lifestyle choices (especially smoking), and possession of the APOE-ε4 allele were consistently associated with an increased risk of age-related cognitive decline. Important factors not considered by Plassman et al (2010) are decline or changes in brain tissue volume. This is surprising, as larger brain volume, estimated by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), has been associated with higher intelligence, with reported associations ranging from 0.33 to 0.42 across studies Studies have shown that there are direct links between reduction in brain tissue volume and cognitive decline (Sluimer et al, 2008), that decline in brain tissue volume and increased cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) longitudinally are associated with lower cognitive performance (Cardenas et al, 2011), and that tissue loss is accelerated in individuals with mild cognitive impairment compared with the normal decline with aging (Driscoll et al, 2009)
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