Extrinsic and Intrinsic Brain Network Connectivity Maintains Cognition across the Lifespan Despite Accelerated Decay of Regional Brain Activation
Authors
Razi, Adeel
Geerligs, Linda
Ham, Timothy E
Publication Date
2016-03-16Alternative Title
Higher connectivity with preserved cognition in older age
Journal Title
The Journal of Neuroscience
ISSN
0270-6474
Publisher
Society for Neuroscience
Volume
36
Pages
3115-3126
Language
English
Type
Article
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Tsvetanov, K. A., Henson, R., Tyler, L., Razi, A., Geerligs, L., Ham, T. E., & Rowe, J. (2016). Extrinsic and Intrinsic Brain Network Connectivity Maintains Cognition across the Lifespan Despite Accelerated Decay of Regional Brain Activation. The Journal of Neuroscience, 36 3115-3126. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2733-15.2016
Abstract
The maintenance of wellbeing across the lifespan depends on the preservation of cognitive function. We propose that successful cognitive aging is determined by interactions both within and between large-scale functional brain networks. Such connectivity can be estimated from task-free functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), also known as resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI). However, common correlational methods are confounded by age-related changes in the neurovascular signaling. To estimate network interactions at the neuronal rather than vascular level, we used generative models that specified both the neural interactions and a flexible neurovascular forward model. The networks' parameters were optimized to explain the spectral dynamics of rs-fMRI data in 602 healthy human adults from population-based cohorts who were approximately uniformly distributed between 18 and 88 years (www.cam-can.com). We assessed directed connectivity within and between three key large-scale networks: the salience network, dorsal attention network, and default mode network. We found that age influences connectivity both within and between these networks, over and above the effects on neurovascular coupling. Canonical correlation analysis revealed that the relationship between network connectivity and cognitive function was age-dependent: cognitive performance relied on neural dynamics more strongly in older adults. These effects were driven partly by reduced stability of neural activity within all networks, as expressed by an accelerated decay of neural information. Our findings suggest that the balance of excitatory connectivity between networks, and the stability of intrinsic neural representations within networks, changes with age. The cognitive function of older adults becomes increasingly dependent on these factors.
Keywords
ageing, cross-spectral dynamic causal modelling, resting state, salience network, default mode network, dorsal attention network, between- / within-network, fMRI
Sponsorship
The Cambridge Centre for Ageing and Neuroscience (Cam-CAN) research was supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (grant number BB/H008217/1). JBR is supported by the Wellcome Trust (103838). We are grateful to the Cam-CAN respondents and their primary care teams in Cambridge for their participation in this study. We also thank colleagues at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit MEG and MRI facilities for their assistance. Further information about the Cam-CAN corporate authorship membership can be found at: http://www.cam-can.com/publications/Cam-CAN_Corporate_Author.html#12
Funder references
BBSRC (BB/H008217/1)
WELLCOME TRUST (103838/Z/14/Z)
MRC (unknown)
Medical Research Council (MC_U105597119)
Wellcome Trust (093875/Z/10/Z)
Medical Research Council (MC_U105579226)
Embargo Lift Date
2099-01-01
Identifiers
External DOI: https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2733-15.2016
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/253272
Rights
Attribution 4.0 International, Attribution 4.0 International, Attribution 4.0 International, Attribution 4.0 International, Attribution 4.0 International, Attribution 4.0 International
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