Abstract
Inter-subject variability in age-related brain changes may relate to educational attainment, as suggested by cognitive reserve theories. This voxel-based morphometry study investigated the impact of very low educational level on the relationship between regional gray matter (rGM) volumes and age in healthy elders. Magnetic resonance imaging data were acquired in elders with low educational attainment (less than 4 years) (n = 122) and high educational level (n = 66), pulling together individuals examined using either of three MRI scanners/acquisition protocols. Voxelwise group comparisons showed no rGM differences (p<0.05, family-wise error corrected for multiple comparisons). When within-group voxelwise patterns of linear correlation were compared between high and low education groups, there was one cluster of greater rGM loss with aging in low versus high education elders in the left anterior cingulate cortex (p<0.05, FWE-corrected), as well as a trend in the left dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (p<0.10). These results provide preliminary indication that education might exert subtle protective effects against age-related brain changes in healthy subjects. The anterior cingulate cortex, critical to inhibitory control processes, may be particularly sensitive to such effects, possibly given its involvement in cognitive stimulating activities at school or later throughout life.
Highlights
Many neuroimaging studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have demonstrated the presence of morphological changes associated with aging in the living human brain, most oftenPLOS ONE | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0140945 October 16, 2015Age-Related gray matter (GM) Reduction Related to Education in Healthy Elders
The two groups of subjects had a similar proportion of male participants (x2 = 1.08; p = 0.298), subjects with high education were slightly younger than low education participants (t = 1.98; p = 0.049). (Table 1)
Considering scan sequence/site, subjects examined in each of the three studies that contributed MRI data had on average similar age, and the same proportion of male participants
Summary
We aimed to verify the impact of education on the relationship between GM volumes and aging in elders with no previous or recent history of neuropsychiatric conditions and with normal cognitive functioning
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