Abstract
Background: Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1H-MRS) is a non-invasive imaging technique that enables quantification of neurochemistry in vivo and thereby facilitates investigation of the biochemical underpinnings of human cognitive variability. Studies in the field of cognitive spectroscopy have commonly focused on relationships between measures of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), a surrogate marker of neuronal health and function, and broad measures of cognitive performance, such as IQ.Methodology/Principal Findings: In this study, we used 1H-MRS to interrogate single-voxels in occipitoparietal and frontal cortex, in parallel with assessments of psychometric intelligence, in a sample of 40 healthy adult participants. We found correlations between NAA and IQ that were within the range reported in previous studies. However, the magnitude of these effects was significantly modulated by the stringency of data screening and the extent to which outlying values contributed to statistical analyses.Conclusions/Significance: 1H-MRS offers a sensitive tool for assessing neurochemistry non-invasively, yet the relationships between brain metabolites and broad aspects of human behavior such as IQ are subtle. We highlight the need to develop an increasingly rigorous analytical and interpretive framework for collecting and reporting data obtained from cognitive spectroscopy studies of this kind.
Highlights
Parallel refinements in neuropsychological assessment and neuroimaging techniques enable the neurophysiological basis of individual variation in cognitive ability to be probed with increasing methodological precision (Jung and Haier, 2007; Haier, 2009)
All analyses reported here adopt the standard convention of expressing N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) as a ratio to Cr (NAA/Cr)
Full-scale IQ (FSIQ) scores were available for 31 participants and Information Processing Speed (IPS) scores for all 40 participants
Summary
Parallel refinements in neuropsychological assessment and neuroimaging techniques enable the neurophysiological basis of individual variation in cognitive ability to be probed with increasing methodological precision (Jung and Haier, 2007; Haier, 2009). Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) provides non-invasive quantification of neurochemicals and their metabolites in pre-defined regions of tissue, with a typical spatial resolution on the order of cubic centimeters. Specificity of voxel localization, and tissue type, is increased, but SNR is reduced (Freeman, 2003). In Canavan’s disease, a degenerative condition characterized by a progressive loss of myelin, there is a specific, robust increase in the N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) peak, reflective of the increased volume of this metabolite (Matalon et al, 1988; Namboodiri et al, 2006). Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1H-MRS) is a non-invasive imaging technique that enables quantification of neurochemistry in vivo and thereby facilitates investigation of the biochemical underpinnings of human cognitive variability. Studies in the field of cognitive spectroscopy have commonly focused on relationships between measures of N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), a surrogate marker of neuronal health and function, and broad measures of cognitive performance, such as IQ
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