Aging of cerebral white matter.
Aging of cerebral white matter.
复制标题
脑白质的老化。
DOI：
10.1016/j.arr.2016.11.006
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发表时间：
2017-03
影响因子：
13.1
通讯作者：
Hu X
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Liu H;Yang Y;Xia Y;Zhu W;Leak RK;Wei Z;Wang J;Hu X
白色物质（White matter，WM）占据人脑的大部分体积，主要由有髓鞘的轴突和产生髓鞘的神经胶质细胞组成。WM内的有髓轴突是皮层和皮层下区域之间有效神经传递的结构基础。与神经元富集的灰质区相似，WM在衰老过程中也经历了一系列变化。工作记忆功能障碍可导致严重的神经行为和认知障碍。因此，年龄相关的WM的变化可能有助于在老年人中观察到的功能下降。此外，老年WM变得更容易患神经系统疾病，如中风，创伤性脑损伤（TBI）和神经退行性病变。本文综述了自然衰老过程中WM的结构和功能变化，并对其机制进行了探讨。我们还讨论了与年龄相关的WM变化如何影响各种脑部疾病的进展，包括缺血性和出血性中风，TBI，阿尔茨海默病和帕金森病。尽管相对于灰质，WM的生理学仍然知之甚少，但WM是许多神经和精神疾病的合理治疗靶点。
White matter (WM) occupies a large volume of the human cerebrum and is mainly composed of myelinated axons and myelin-producing glial cells. The myelinated axons within WM are the structural foundation for efficient neurotransmission between cortical and subcortical areas. Similar to neuron-enriched gray matter areas, WM undergoes a series of changes during the process of aging. WM malfunction can induce serious neurobehavioral and cognitive impairments. Thus, age-related changes in WM may contribute to the functional decline observed in the elderly. In addition, aged WM becomes more susceptible to neurological disorders, such as stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and neurodegeneration. In this review, we summarize the structural and functional alterations of WM in natural aging and speculate on the underlying mechanisms. We also discuss how age-related WM changes influence the progression of various brain disorders, including ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, TBI, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. Although the physiology of WM is still poorly understood relative to gray matter, WM is a rational therapeutic target for a number of neurological and psychiatric conditions.