Cambridge Centre for Ageing and NeuroscienceThe Science of Ageing
By combining the latest Cam-CAN data with two other longitudinal cohorts, a new study shows that cortical thickness is a more sensitive marker of cognitive ageing than overall volume, with thinning tracking faster decline in general cognitive ability (g), while surface area stays largely stable and presents more like a genetic trait than a dynamic marker of ageing
New CamCAN study used 11 different measures to show that white-matter health is multidimensional: 4 latent MRI-derived factors explained 89% of variance, were predicted by vascular health, and predicted cognition
Recent paper shows that older adults’ tendency to see facial expressions as more positive may not be the adaptive “rose-coloured glasses” we thought, but could signal early cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.
People with a history of depression showed slower processing of angry faces, consistent with a bias towards negative information, and suggesting this bias persists in remission. This bias was associated with increased activity in certain brain regions including the insula.
We have found the strongest evidence yet that older people can recruit additional brain regions to help perform complex tasks, possibly compensating for age-related changes elsewhere.
Brain networks measured by fMRI become less segregated with age, and less segregation is associated with poorer cognition, even after adjusting for age. However, contrary to expectations, segregation does not mediate the positive effect of mid-life activities on late life cognition.
We found that strong brain connections, especially those supported by white matter, are crucial for maintaining cognitive function. As we grow older, these connections become even more important, particularly for complex thinking.
Visual short-term memory – the ability to hold information in mind over a short period – declines with age. We show that connections within the visual and attention networks increase as people hold more information in mind, but age negatively affects the ability to increase connectivity as the task gets harder.
We show there are at least three distinct aspects of cardiovascular health, and one of these – pulse pressure (systolic – diastolic blood pressure) – is uniquely associated with cognitive decline. This association was stronger for older adults, such that older individuals with higher pulse pressure had greater cognitive decline. Thus maintaining low pulse pressure may help to preserve cognitive function into old age.
Fluid intelligence, the ability to solve novel problems, is essential for effective behaviour but declines steeply with age. We show that this is partly explained by reduced activity in frontoparietal brain regions; however, the link between brain activity and intelligence is buffered by engaging in a wide variety of regular physical activities, which supports exercise as a potential lifestyle factor to help promote successful aging.
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