EARLY MARKERS OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE

巴尔的摩纵向研究参与者的纵向研究 老龄化(BLSA)表明，在一些认知和 记忆力测试在70岁以后会下降。然而，有大量的 认知老化轨迹中个体间的变异性。数据 来自我们实验室的研究表明，BLSA参与者的早期下降 预测后来的认知和记忆障碍，以及这种下降 可能是病理性认知老化的早期标志。的贡献 这些认知差异对大脑结构和功能的影响 衰老尚不清楚，因为还没有收集到神经成像数据 对于这些个体来说，很少有研究是关于 关于这种变化的文学作品。该项目将通过以下方式解决这一差距 180例年度神经影像研究文献的获取与量化 选定的BLSA参与者(90名男性和90名女性，年龄60岁和 年龄较大)超过9年。最先进的磁共振成像技术 将使用核磁共振(MRI)和正电子发射断层扫描(PET)来测量大脑 分别是解剖和血液流动。宠物和氧气-15标记的水将 提供静息状态下的脑血流量测量和 在执行内存任务期间检查的功能完整性 在认知需求过程中大脑老化。一系列神经心理学 测试将与神经成像一起进行 评估。 该项目的主要目标是解决以下问题 问题：1.先前的心理和身体特征能预测 脑结构和功能的变化与神经心理变化 晚年？2.大脑结构和功能的纵向变化 与认知和记忆表现的变化有关？3.什么是 治疗后男性和女性脑解剖和生理改变的速度 60岁？4.大脑发育的频率和进程是什么 社区老年人口中的异常现象？这个项目将 为研究人员和临床医生提供关键信息 正常和病理性认知老化的预测因子与脑的关系 异常，这将增强我们对健康变化的了解 以及老年性疾病，如阿尔茨海默氏症。

Longitudinal studies of participants in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (BLSA) have indicated that performance on some cognitive and memory tests declines after age 70. However, there is a great deal of variability among individuals in the trajectories of cognitive aging. Data from our laboratory indicate that early declines in BLSA participants predict later impairments in cognition and memory and that such declines may be early markers of pathological cognitive aging. The contributions of changes in brain structure and function to these differences in cognitive aging are unclear, as neuroimaging data have not been collected systematically for these individuals and there are few studies in the literature of such changes. This project will address this gap through the acquisition and quantification of annual neuroimaging studies of 180 selected BLSA participants (90 males and 90 females, aged 60 years and older) over a 9-year period. State-of-the-art magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) will be used to measure brain anatomy and blood flow, respectively. PET and oxygen-15 labeled water will provide measurements of cerebral blood flow during resting conditions and during the performance of memory tasks to examine functional integrity of the aging brain during cognitive demand. A battery of neuropsychological tests will be administered in conjunction with the neuroimaging evaluations. The principal goals of this project are to address the following questions: 1. Do prior psychological and physical characteristics predict changes in brain structure and function and neuropsychological changes later in life? 2. Are longitudinal changes in brain structure and function associated with changes in cognitive and memory performance? 3. What is the rate of change in brain anatomy and physiology in men and women after the age of 60 years? 4. What is the frequency and progression of brain abnormalities in community-dwelling aged populations? This project will provide critical information for researchers and clinicians on the predictors of normal and pathological cognitive aging in relation to brain abnormalities, which will enhance our understanding of changes in health and diseases of the elderly, such as Alzheimer's Disease.