Cortical thickness is linked to executive functioning in adulthood and aging
Cortical thickness is linked to executive functioning in adulthood and aging
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DOI：
10.1002/hbm.21311
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发表时间：
2012-07-01
影响因子：
4.8
通讯作者：
Heekeren, Hauke R.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Burzynska, Agnieszka Z.;Nagel, Irene E.;Heekeren, Hauke R.
在正常衰老过程中，依赖额顶网络的执行功能显著下降。为了描述与年龄相关的执行功能障碍的神经解剖学相关性，我们调查了73名年轻(20-32岁)和56名老年(60-71岁)健康成年人的皮质厚度与执行功能的关系。使用威斯康星卡片分类测试(WCST)评估执行功能。在高分辨率T1加权磁共振图像上使用基于表面的分割程序测量皮质地幔每个位置的皮质厚度。对于参与WCST操作的区域，例如外侧前额叶和顶叶皮质，我们发现皮质较厚与较高的准确性相关。基于ROI的后续分析显示，这些关联在老年人中比在年轻人中更强。此外，在老年人中，表现好的和表现差的人在通常与WCST表现有关的区域内的皮质厚度不同。我们的结果表明，执行功能的结构皮质相关性很大程度上与先前确定的功能模式重叠。我们的结论是，相关大脑区域的结构保留与老年更高水平的执行绩效相关，并强调了考虑大脑老化与认知功能相关的异质性的必要性。Hum Brain Mapp，2011年。(C)2011年Wiley-Liss，Inc.
Executive functions that are dependent upon the frontal-parietal network decline considerably during the course of normal aging. To delineate neuroanatomical correlates of age-related executive impairment, we investigated the relation between cortical thickness and executive functioning in 73 younger (20-32 years) and 56 older (60-71 years) healthy adults. Executive functioning was assessed using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). Cortical thickness was measured at each location of the cortical mantle using surface-based segmentation procedures on high-resolution T1-weighted magnetic resonance images. For regions involved in WCST performance, such as the lateral prefrontal and parietal cortices, we found that thicker cortex was related to higher accuracy. Follow-up ROI-based analyses revealed that these associations were stronger in older than in younger adults. Moreover, among older adults, high and low performers differed in cortical thickness within regions generally linked to WCST performance. Our results indicate that the structural cortical correlates of executive functioning largely overlap with previously identified functional patterns. We conclude that structural preservation of relevant brain regions is associated with higher levels of executive performance in old age, and underscore the need to consider the heterogeneity of brain aging in relation to cognitive functioning. Hum Brain Mapp, 2011. (C) 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.