Exploring age-related functional brain changes during audio-visual integration tasks in early to mid-adulthood

Abstract

The seamless integration of visual and auditory information is a fundamental aspect of human cognition. Although age-related functional changes in Audio-Visual Integration (AVI) have been extensively explored in the past, thorough studies across various age groups remain insufficient. Previous studies have provided valuable insights into age-related AVI using EEG-based sensor data. However, these studies have been limited in their ability to capture spatial information related to brain source activation and their connectivity. To address these gaps, our study conducted a comprehensive audio-visual integration task with a specific focus on assessing the brain maturation effects in various age groups, particularly in early-mid adulthood. We presented visual, auditory, and audio-visual stimuli and recorded EEG data from Young (18–25 years), Transition (26–33 years), and Middle (34–50 years) age cohort healthy participants. We utilized source-based features for the classification of these age groups. We aimed to understand how aging affects brain activation and functional connectivity among hubs during audio-visual tasks. Our findings unveiled diminished levels of brain activation among middle-aged individuals, which escalate when exposed to AVI stimuli. Lower frequency bands showed substantial changes with increasing age during AVI. Our results demonstrated that implementing the k-means elbow method during the AVI task successfully categorized brain regions into five distinct brain networks. Additionally, we observed increased functional connectivity in middle age, particularly in the frontal, temporal, and occipital regions. These results highlight the compensatory neural mechanisms involved in aging during cognitive tasks.