Task-switching Performance Research Articles

A neural implementation of cognitive reserve: Insights from a longitudinal fMRI study of set-switching in aging

Aging is often accompanied by changes in brain structure and executive functions, particularly in tasks involving cognitive flexibility, such as task-switching. However, substantial individual differences in the degree of cognitive impairment indicate that some individuals can cope with brain changes more effectively than others, suggesting higher cognitive reserve (CR). This study identified a neural basis for CR by examining the longitudinal relationship between task-related brain activation, structural brain changes, and changes in cognitive performance during an executive task-switching paradigm including single and dual conditions. Fifty-two older individuals were assessed at baseline and followed up after five years. Structural brain changes related to task-switching performance were analyzed using elastic net regression. Task-related functional brain activation was measured using ordinal trends canonical variate analysis (OrT CVA), capturing patterns of activation increasing from single to dual conditions. A differential task-related expression score (dOrT) was calculated as the difference in pattern expression scores between single and dual conditions at baseline. A linear regression model tested whether dOrT moderated the impact of brain changes on changes in switch cost over five years. Results showed a significant interaction between changes in brain structure and dOrT activation on switch cost change, indicating a moderation effect of task-related activation. Higher dOrT buffered the impact of brain structural decline on switch costs, enabling older adults to better cope with age-related brain structural changes and preserve cognitive flexibility. These findings suggest that these task-related activation patterns represent a neural basis for CR.

Predictive alternating runs and random task-switching sequences produce dissociative switch costs in the Consonant-Vowel/Odd-Even task.

Task-switching is commonly used to investigate working memory and attentional control processes. The current study compares predictive versus non-predictive task-sequencing effects on task-switching performance. Participants completed four blocks of the Consonant-Vowel/Odd-Even (CVOE) task: Two single task pure blocks, a predictable switch block where task switching occurred every two trials, and a random switch block where switching was unpredictable. In addition to mean error rates and response times (RTs), we assessed sequence effects on local switch costs (i.e., switch vs. nonswitch trials) and global costs (i.e., nonswitch vs. pure trials) for both error rates and RTs along with their underlying distributions. Overall, we show that while predictive and random switching produced similar patterns for mean error rates and RTs, a dissociation occurred in RT switch costs. When switching was random, local costs were inflated. In contrast, predictive switching increased global costs. Increased local costs for random versus predictive switching reflect an increase in task-setreconfiguration processes as participants struggle to reconfigure to an unpredictable task type in working memory on a subsequent trial. Separately, increased global costs for predictive switching reflect declines in task-set maintenance processes, as participants must maintain both task types in working memory while simultaneously monitoring their progress through the trial sequencing.

Brain activations elicited during task-switching generalize beyond the task: A partial least squares correlation approach to combine fMRI signals and cognition.

An underlying hypothesis for broad transfer from cognitive training is that the regional brain signals engaged during the training task are related to the transfer tasks. However, it is unclear whether the brain activations elicited from a specific cognitive task can generalize to performance of other tasks, esp. in normal aging where cognitive training holds much promise. In this large dual-site functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we aimed to characterize the neurobehavioral correlates of task-switching in normal aging and examine whether the task-switching-related fMRI-blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signals, engaged during varieties of cognitive control, generalize to other tasks of executive control and general cognition. We therefore used a hybrid blocked and event-related fMRI task-switching paradigm to investigate brain regions associated with multiple types of cognitive control on 129 non-demented older adults (65-85 years). This large dataset provided a unique opportunity for a data-driven partial least squares-correlation approach to investigate the generalizability of multiple fMRI-BOLD signals associated with task-switching costs to other tasks of executive control, general cognition, and demographic characteristics. While some fMRI signals generalized beyond the scanned task, others did not. Results indicate right middle frontal brain activation as detrimental to task-switching performance, whereas inferior frontal and caudate activations were related to faster processing speed during the fMRI task-switching, but activations of these regions did not predict performance on other tasks of executive control or general cognition. However, BOLD signals from the right lateral occipital cortex engaged during the fMRI task positively predicted performance on a working memory updating task, and BOLD signals from the left post-central gyrus that were disengaged during the fMRI task were related to slower processing speed in the task as well as to lower general cognition. Together, these results suggest generalizability of these BOLD signals beyond the scanned task. The findings also provided evidence for the general slowing hypothesis of aging as most variance in the data were explained by low processing speed and global low BOLD signal in older age. As processing speed shared variance with task-switching and other executive control tasks, it might be a possible basis of generalizability between these tasks. Additional results support the dedifferentiation hypothesis of brain aging, as right middle frontal activations predicted poorer task-switching performance. Overall, we observed that the BOLD signals related to the fMRI task not only generalize to the performance of other executive control tasks, but unique brain predictors of out-of-scanner performance can be identified.

A Comparison of Rapid Rule-Learning Strategies in Humans and Monkeys.

Interspecies comparisons are key to deriving an understanding of the behavioral and neural correlates of human cognition from animal models. We perform a detailed comparison of the strategies of female macaque monkeys to male and female humans on a variant of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), a widely studied and applied task that provides a multiattribute measure of cognitive function and depends on the frontal lobe. WCST performance requires the inference of a rule change given ambiguous feedback. We found that well-trained monkeys infer new rules three times more slowly than minimally instructed humans. Input-dependent hidden Markov model-generalized linear models were fit to their choices, revealing hidden states akin to feature-based attention in both species. Decision processes resembled a win-stay, lose-shift strategy with interspecies similarities as well as key differences. Monkeys and humans both test multiple rule hypotheses over a series of rule-search trials and perform inference-like computations to exclude candidate choice options. We quantitatively show that perseveration, random exploration, and poor sensitivity to negative feedback account for the slower task-switching performance in monkeys.

Age-related changes in the effects of induced positive affect on executive control in younger and older adults—evidence from a task-switching paradigm

ABSTRACT Positive affect has been shown to promote task-switching performance in healthy young adults. Given the well-documented age-related decline in executive functioning, we asked whether induced positive affect also helps to improve task-switching performance in older adults. Sixty-eight younger and older adults performed a switching task before and after they had watched cartoon clips (positive affect group) or documentaries (neutral affect group). Positive affect was associated with reduced error rates across all trial types in both age groups. In older adults, the increase in accuracy came at the expense of slower response times for task-switch trials, resulting in greater switch costs. This pattern of findings is inconsistent with the popular notion that positive affect supports greater cognitive flexibility. Instead, positive affect may trigger adjustments in response control settings – such as a shift in the speed-accuracy trade-off toward more cautious responding – depending on the experienced level of task difficulty.

Not Everybody Has an Inner Voice: Behavioral Consequences of Anendophasia

It is commonly assumed that inner speech—the experience of thought as occurring in a natural language—is a human universal. Recent evidence, however, suggests that the experience of inner speech in adults varies from near constant to nonexistent. We propose a name for a lack of the experience of inner speech—anendophasia—and report four studies examining some of its behavioral consequences. We found that adults who reported low levels of inner speech (N = 46) had lower performance on a verbal working memory task and more difficulty performing rhyme judgments compared with adults who reported high levels of inner speech (N = 47). Task-switching performance—previously linked to endogenous verbal cueing—and categorical effects on perceptual judgments were unrelated to differences in inner speech.

Effects of Biophilic Design interventions on university students' cognitive performance: An audio-visual experimental study in an Immersive Virtual office Environment

The human-nature connection should be a key component in the design of supportive and comfortable indoor environments. An interest in introducing Nature Based Solutions indoor via Biophilic Design (BD) intervention recently emerged. Related benefits for work efficiency have been identified in lab-studies without the possibility to perform preliminary design assessments. Recently, VR has been adopted thanks to its advantages for data collection in highly realistic environments. To date, most of the research on BD has been focused on the visual connection with nature even if people experience multiple senses simultaneously. In this paper, a new design approach for preliminary assessment of BD intervention in VR is presented. A 3x3 between-subjects design study is presented, comparing three office layouts (Indoor Green, Outdoor Green and Non-Biophilic) and three acoustic scenarios (Office, Office + Traffic and Office + Nature). 198 participants performed one test session completing three cognitive tasks for each acoustic condition, and survey. The results of the sense of presence and immersivity (visual), the sensory congruency (acoustic) and cybersickness disorders suggested that VR is an effective tool to preliminary evaluate the potential of BD interventions (ecological validity). The findings of the cognitive tests revealed that audio-visual connection with nature can positively influence working memory, inhibition and task-switching performance. The acoustic factor exhibited a higher improvement effect compared to the visual factor, between 23 % and 71 % against 12 %–39 %. Moreover, the Natural sound in the Indoor Green condition was the most supportive visual*acoustic condition while Traffic in the Non-Biophilic environment was the most disruptive one.

Left superior parietal lobe mediates the link between spontaneous mind-wandering tendency and task-switching performance

While increasing studies have documented the link between mind wandering and task switching, less is known about which brain regions mediate this relationship. Using the MPI-Leipzig Mind-Brain-Body dataset (N = 173), we investigated the association between trait-level tendencies of mind wandering, task-switching performance, structural connectivity, and resting-state functional connectivity. At the behavioral level, we found that higher spontaneous mind-wandering trait scores were associated with shorter reaction times on both repeat and switch trials. The whole brain cortical thickness analysis revealed a strong mediating role of the left superior parietal lobe, which is part of the dorsal attention network, in the link between spontaneous mind-wandering tendency and task-switching performance. The resting-state functional connectivity analysis further demonstrated that this association was partly mediated by the negative dorsal attention network-default mode network functional connectivity. No significant mediating effects were found for deliberate mind-wandering tendency. Overall, the findings highlight the pivotal role of the left superior parietal lobe in activating new mental set during mind-wandering and task-switching processes, providing another evidence in favor of a role for switching in mind wandering.

4 Relationships Between Task-Switching Performance and Adaptive Behavior Outcomes in Survivors of Pediatric Brain Tumor

Objective:Survivors of pediatric brain tumor (BT) experience impaired executive function (EF) and adaptive behavior (i.e. the ability to complete daily living tasks independently). The literature hypothesizes that executive dysfunction contributes to suboptimal adaptive behavior outcomes in BT survivors; however, the aspects of EF that drive this relationship remain unexplored. Task-switching is an EF component that involves switching between concurrently presented tasks. This skill is critical for many day-to-day activities and may therefore contribute to observed adaptive functioning difficulties. This study investigates relationships between performance on two task-switching measures and adaptive behavior outcomes in BT survivors compared to healthy controls.Participants and Methods:86 survivors of pediatric BT (Mage(SD)= 23.42(4.24), 44 females) and 86 age- and sex-matched controls (Mage(SD) = 23.09(4.40), 44 females) from the Atlanta area completed the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System Trail Making Test (TMT) and Verbal Fluency Test (VFT). Respectively, the Letter-Number Sequencing (LNS) and Category Switching (CS) conditions were isolated as measures of task-switching. Baseline conditions, representing the foundational skills needed to perform these timed task-switching measures rapidly (TMT: Letter Sequencing, Number Sequencing; VFT: Category Fluency), were included as covariates in all regressions. Informants familiar with the participants’ daily living were interviewed with the Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised (SIB-R) to measure adaptive behavior in four domains (Motor Skills, Social Communication, Personal Living, Community Living). Linear regressions and t-tests confirmed group differences on task-switching performance and on adaptive functioning outcomes, respectively. Then, linear regressions investigated relationships between performance on each task-switching measure (LNS, CS) and SIB-R scores for survivors. A group by task-switching interaction was added to directly explore group differences in these relationships. α=.0125 was used due to Bonferroni correction for the four SIB-R comparisons within each task-switching measure.Results:BT survivors were more impaired than controls on LNS, CS, and SIB-R scores (p<.05, except Personal Living p=.058). For TMT, decreased performance on LNS predicted lower SIB-R scores in Social Communication (p=.001, r2semipartial=.14), Personal Living (p=.002, r2semipartial=.13), and Community Living (p=.003, r2semipartial =.11), but not Motor Skills (p=.184) in BT survivors. Strength of significant relationships was greater for survivors than controls (all p<.002). For VFT, decreased performance on CS predicted lower SIB-R scores in Personal Living (p=.036, r2semipartial =.06) and Community Living (p=.04, r2semipartial =.05), but not in Motor Skills (p=.716) or Social Communication (p=.14) in BT survivors. Positive relationships between CS and SIB-R scores for all 4 domains were greater in survivors than controls (p<.0125).Conclusions:These findings reveal a robust, positive relationship between task-switching performance and independent, daily behaviors that is specific to BT survivors. The relationship between LNS and Motor Skills may have been weakened by covariates involving baseline motor abilities; however, CS results suggest that task-switching is important for motor skills in survivors relative to controls. Community living skills were impaired in survivors and consistently related to task-switching performance. This work may inform interventions to target task-switching abilities and consequently, promote everyday living skills. Interventions aimed at vulnerabilities in adaptive behavior may help increase independence and quality-of-life as survivors transition to adulthood.

Impact of age of onset on bilinguals’ task switching performance in a nonimmigration context

It is not clear whether bilingualism leads to task switching benefits in single-language nonimmigration contexts, as in dual-language and code-switching immigration contexts. Ninety young Persian-speaking monolingual and bilingual adults reported their language proficiency and use, with the early bilinguals indicating a balanced rating for their L1 and L2, and late bilinguals reporting slightly higher ratings for L1, relative to L2. Concerning the onset age of bilingualism, the bilinguals were classified as early and late bilinguals according to whether they initiated active regular use of the two languages before or after the age of eight. A nonverbal alternating-runs task switching paradigm was used to measure global switch cost (GSC) and local switch cost (LSC). The findings revealed a slight nonsignificant GSC but a significantly lower LSC for early bilinguals, compared to monolinguals, suggesting that bilingualism effects on task switching do not transpire uniformly across different contexts.

Reward-based modulation of task-switching performance: a diffusion model analysis.

Investigating the interface between motivation and cognitive control, we conducted two task switching experiments (N = 96 each) with reward manipulation where participants switched between three different tasks. We measured N-2 task repetition costs, which denote the performance decrement in N-2 task repetition sequences (ABA) relative to N-2 task switch sequences (CBA), and which are presumed to be a marker of inhibitory control in task switching. Participants in the reward group received performance-contingent reward in the second phase of each experiment, and in the second experiment they were additionally penalized for errors. Reward thresholds were determined individually based on participants' performance during the first phase of each experiment. Participants in the control group did not receive any reward. The reward manipulation led to faster performance in the reward group relative to the control group. Diffusion modeling revealed that the reward manipulation induced an increase in drift rate parameter, consistent with dopamine-based enhancement of attentional focus under reward. Contrary to our expectations, no robust evidence for a reward-based modulation of N-2 repetition costs was found across the two experiments. N-2 task repetition costs were small in both experiments, and possibly, a larger amount of inhibitory control is needed in order to obtain empirical evidence for a reward-related modulation thereof. However, additional analyses suggested that reward may not interact with inhibitory control on the task level at all.

Resting heart rate (variability) and cognition relationships reveal cognitively healthy individuals with pathological amyloid/tau ratio.

Resting heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) have been linked with cognition in the general population and in older individuals. The knowledge of this aspect of heart-brain relationship is relatively absent in older individuals with early Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. This study explores relationships of the HR, HRV, and cognition in cognitively healthy individuals with pathological amyloid/tau ratio (CH-PATs) in cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) compared to those with normal ratio (CH-NATs). We examined therelationshipsbetween1) resting HR and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE); 2) resting HR and brain processing during Stroop interference; and 3) resting vagally mediated HRV (vmHRV) and task switching performance. Our studies showed that compared to CH-NATs, those CH-PATs with higher resting HR presented with lower MMSE, and less brain activation during interference processing. In addition, resting vmHRV was significantly correlated with task switching accuracy in CH-NATs, but not in CH-PATs. Thesethreedifferenttestsindicatedysfunctionalheart-brainconnections in CH-PATs, suggesting a potential cardio-cerebral dysfunctional integration.

Differences in Cognitive Abilities between Monolingual and Bilingual People: A Two digital experimental approach

Due to educational requirements, a growing number of people in contemporary society are starting to learn languages other than their mother tongue. For a very long time, numerous viewpoints have been used to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of this occurrence. This study evaluates the variations in attention and task switching performance between monolinguals and bilinguals from the standpoint of cognitive ability to decide whether a bilingual study is required. The experiment was designed to answer the following research question: How does bilingualism assist in the improvement of cognitive skills in young adults? According to the study, bilinguals are more attentive and switch tasks more efficiently than monolinguals. Two digital experiments, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test and the Test of Variables of Attention, are utilized to look into the cognitive differences between bilingual and monolingual participants. The expected outcomes should support the hypothesis. Once the data is accessible, it will be further evaluated using a t-test to investigate the differences and correlations between the data sets to reach conclusions.

Commonalities between mind wandering and task-set switching: An event-related potential study

Previous research has established that mind wandering does not necessarily disrupt one's task-switching performance. Here we investigated the effects of mind wandering on electrophysiological signatures, measured using event-related potentials (ERPs), during a switching task. In the current study, a final sample of 22 young adults performed a task-switching paradigm while electroencephalography was continuously recorded; mind wandering was assessed via thought probes at the end of each block. Consistent with previous research, we found no significant disruptive effects of mind wandering on task-switching performance. The ERP results showed that at the posterior electrode sites (P3, Pz, and P4), P3 amplitude was higher for mind-wandering switch trials than on-task switch trials, thus opposing the typical pattern of P3 attenuation during periods of mind wandering relative to on-task episodes. Considering that increased P3 amplitude during higher-order switch trials (e.g., response rule switching) may reflect the implementation of new higher-order task sets/rules, the current findings seem to indicate similar executive control processes underlie mind wandering and task-set switching, providing further evidence in favor of a role for switching in mind wandering.

Multiple decrements in switch task performance in female rats exposed to space radiation

Astronauts on the Artemis missions to the Moon and Mars will be exposed to unavoidable Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR). Studies using male rats suggest that GCR exposure impairs several processes required for cognitive flexibility performance, including attention and task switching. Currently no comparable studies have been conducted with female rats. Given that both males and females will travel into deep space, this study determined whether simulated GCR (GCRsim) exposure impairs task switching performance in female rats. Female Wistar rats exposed to 10 cGy GCRsim (n = 12) and shams (n = 14) were trained to perform a touchscreen-based switch task that mimics a switch task used to evaluate pilots’ response times. In comparison to sham rats, three-fold more GCRsim-exposed rats failed to complete the stimulus response stage of training, a high cognitive loading task. In the switch task, 50% of the GCRsim-exposed rats failed to consistently transition between the repeated and switch blocks of stimuli, which they completed during lower cognitive loading training stages. The GCRsim-exposed rats that completed the switch task only performed at 65% of the accuracy of shams. Female rats exposed to GCRsim thus exhibit multiple decrements in the switch task under high, but not low, cognitive loading conditions. While the operational significance of this performance decrement is unknown, if GCRSim exposure was to induce similar effects in astronauts, our data suggests there may be a reduced ability to execute task switching under high cognitive loading situations.

Task foreknowledge swallows item-specific but not list-wide control learning effects.

Recent context-control learning studies have shown that switch costs are reduced in a particular context predicting a high probability of switching as compared to another context predicting a low probability of switching. These context-specific switch probability effects suggest that control of task sets, through experience, can become associated with a particular context cue and be retrieved subsequently to modulate task-switching efficiency. However, advanced task foreknowledge, mediated by top-down retrieval of a specific task set, also modulates switch costs, as shown in the task-switching literature. Here, we examined how the retrieval of task sets interacts with the retrieval of task control. In Experiments 1 and 2, we provided the task foreknowledge midway through the experiment and examined how it might alter the item-specific switch probability (ISSP) effect and the list-wide switch probability effect (LWSP). Both ISSP and LWSP effects were replicated with no task foreknowledge, demonstrating modulations of switch costs due to context-control learning. These modulations, however, were swallowed once task foreknowledge became available, likely due to the certainty of task foreknowledge overpowering learned probabilistic information. Experiment 3 provided task foreknowledge throughout and compared how it affects the list- versus the item-based control learning. In this case, we detected the LWSP but not the ISSP effect. Experiment 3's findings suggest that, with task foreknowledge, list-based context-control learning does modulate switch costs-likely because the switch probability associations are retrieved proactively. Together, these data suggest that task-switching performance benefits from multiple paths to retrieve information in memory, best if done proactively. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Electrophysiological Correlates of Proactive Control and Binding Processes during Task Switching in Tourette Syndrome.

The occurrence of tics in Tourette syndrome (TS) has often been linked to impaired cognitive control, but empirical findings are still inconclusive. A recent view proposes that tics may be the result of an abnormally strong interrelation between perceptual processes and motor actions, commonly referred to as perception-action binding. The general aim of the present study was to examine proactive control and binding effects in the context of task switching in adult human patients with TS and matched healthy controls. A cued task switching paradigm was employed in 24 patients (18 male, 6 female) and 25 controls while recording electroencephalography (EEG). Residue iteration decomposition (RIDE) was applied to analyze cue-locked proactive cognitive control and target-locked binding processes. Behavioral task switching performance was unaltered in patients with TS. A cue-locked parietal switch positivity, reflecting proactive control processes involved in the reconfiguration of the new task did not differ between groups. Importantly, target-locked fronto-central (N2) and parietal (P3) modulations, reflecting binding processes between perception and action, differed between groups. Underlying neurophysiological processes were best depicted after temporal decomposition of the EEG signal. The present results argue for unaltered proactive control but altered perception-action binding processes in the context of task switching, supporting the view that the integration of perception and action is processed differently in patients TS. Future studies should further investigate the specific conditions under which binding may be altered in TS and the influence of top-down processes, such as proactive control, on bindings.

Jointly modeling behavioral and EEG measures of proactive control in task switching.

In this study, we implement joint modeling of behavioral and single-trial electroencephalography (EEG) data derived from a cued-trials task-switching paradigm to test the hypothesis that trial-by-trial adjustment of response criterion can be linked to changes in the event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited during the cue-target interval (CTI). Specifically, we assess whether ERP components associated with preparation to switch task and preparation ofthe relevant task are linked to a response criterion parameter derived from a simple diffusion decision model (DDM). Joint modeling frameworks characterize the brain-behavior link by simultaneously modeling behavioral and neural data and implementing a linking function to bind these two submodels. We examined three joint models: The first characterized the core link between EEG and criterion, the second added a switch preparation input parameter and the third also added a task preparation input parameter. The criterion-EEG link was strongest just before target onset. Inclusion of switch and task preparation parameters did not improve the performance of the criterion-EEG link but was necessary to accurately model the ERP waveform morphology. While we successfully jointly modeled latent model parameters and EEG data from a task-switching paradigm, these findings show that customized cognitive models are needed that are tailored to the multiple cognitive control processes underlying task-switching performance. This is the first paper to implement joint modeling of behavioral measures and single-trial electroencephalography (EEG) data derived from the cue-target interval in a cued-trials task-switching paradigm. Model hyperparameters showed a strong link between response criterion and the pre-target negativity amplitude. Additional parameters (switch preparation, task preparation) were necessary to model the cue-locked ERP waveform morphology. This is consistent with multiple cognitive control processes underlying proactive control and points to the need for more nuanced models of task-switching performance.

AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN CUED TASK SWITCHING

Abstract The task switching paradigm is widely used to examine cognitive switching, a critical subcomponent of cognitive control. Studies on aging suggest that switching is particularly vulnerable to age-related changes in cognition. However, the effects of manipulating the stimulus dimension on task switching performance is relatively understudied. In this study, 13 younger adults (YA; 11F; Mean Age= 22.31) and 13 older adults (OA; 8F; Mean Age= 65.85) completed a novel cued task-switching paradigm requiring speeded same-different judgments based on a perceptual (color) or conceptual (animal) dimension of the stimuli. Task switching performance was measured using switch cost, which is the difference in accuracy between switch and repeat trials. Overall both YA and OA exhibited switch costs, indicating increased cognitive demand when switching between judgments compared to repetition of the same judgement. In regard to group differences, YA and OA performed similarly when performance was collapsed across the stimulus dimensions; however, when examined separately, OA exhibited worse performance than YA when making conceptual judgements. These results highlight the importance of examining carefully manipulated stimulus-related factors in task switching paradigms to advance our understanding of cognitive control and aging.

Resting heart rate (variability) predicts cognitive function and suggests different heart‐brain connections in cognitively healthy individuals with abnormal CSF amyloid/tau

AbstractBackgroundBoth resting heart rate variability (HRV) and resting heart rate (HR) are regulated by the central autonomic network linking prefrontal cortex with cardiac regulation. To better understand the interactions between the heart and cognition we determined the relationships between resting HR/HRV and cognitive function.MethodWe compared and correlated resting HR with Mini‐Mental State Exam (MMSE) in cognitively healthy (CH, n=137) individuals when their CSF amyloid/tau ratios were normal (CH‐NATs, n=51) or pathological (CH‐PATs, n=68), in participants with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n=54), and Alzheimer’s disease (AD, n=42). We also compared and correlated HRV with behavioral performance (accuracy and response time) or alpha event‐related desynchronization (ERD) during Stroop (interference) or task switching testing between subsets of CH‐NATs and CH‐PATs. Cognitive tasks include: 1) Stroop during low load (congruent trials) and high load (incongruent trials); 2) task switching during low load, repeat trials (color‐color or word‐word) and high load, switch trials (color‐word or word‐color). HRV was assessed from 5‐minute resting ECG recording, including: HR and root mean squared of successive differences (RMSSD) that reflect vagal activities.ResultNo differences of resting HR or HRV were observed between CH‐NATs, CH‐PATs, MCI, and AD. Interestingly, resting HR negatively correlated with MMSE only in CH‐PATs (r=‐0.57, p=0.002), but not in CH‐NATs (r=0.07, p=0.71), CH (r=‐0.09, p=0.57), MCI (r=‐0.14, p=0.41), or AD (r=‐0.11, p=0.59) (Fig 1). For Stroop interference testing, resting HR (preceding task) positively correlated with frontal alpha ERD during high load trails (r=0.78, p=0.017) in CH‐PATs, but not in CH‐NATs (Fig 2). For task switch testing, resting RMSSD positively correlated with accuracy during switch trials (r=0.64, p=0.004) in CH‐NATs, but not in CH‐PATs (Fig 3).ConclusionThese results suggest: 1) resting HR is linked with cognition in CH‐PATs; 2) resting HR is related to inhibitory control in CH‐PATs: higher HR linked with less negative alpha ERD (less activation); 3) resting HRV predicts task switching performance in CH‐NATs: higher RMSSD linked with higher accuracy. Overall, resting HR and HRV potentially reflect cognition and executive functions that differentiate CH‐NATs and CH‐PATs, suggesting different cerebral‐cardiovascular integration in these two populations.