1
|
Garcia-Cabello E, Gonzalez-Burgos L, Pereira JB, Hernández-Cabrera JA, Westman E, Volpe G, Barroso J, Ferreira D. The Cognitive Connectome in Healthy Aging. Front Aging Neurosci 2021; 13:694254. [PMID: 34489673 PMCID: PMC8416612 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.694254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 07/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives: Cognitive aging has been extensively investigated using both univariate and multivariate analyses. Sophisticated multivariate approaches such as graph theory could potentially capture unknown complex associations between multiple cognitive variables. The aim of this study was to assess whether cognition is organized into a structure that could be called the “cognitive connectome,” and whether such connectome differs between age groups. Methods: A total of 334 cognitively unimpaired individuals were stratified into early-middle-age (37–50 years, n = 110), late-middle-age (51–64 years, n = 106), and elderly (65–78 years, n = 118) groups. We built cognitive networks from 47 cognitive variables for each age group using graph theory and compared the groups using different global and nodal graph measures. Results: We identified a cognitive connectome characterized by five modules: verbal memory, visual memory—visuospatial abilities, procedural memory, executive—premotor functions, and processing speed. The elderly group showed reduced transitivity and average strength as well as increased global efficiency compared with the early-middle-age group. The late-middle-age group showed reduced global and local efficiency and modularity compared with the early-middle-age group. Nodal analyses showed the important role of executive functions and processing speed in explaining the differences between age groups. Conclusions: We identified a cognitive connectome that is rather stable during aging in cognitively healthy individuals, with the observed differences highlighting the important role of executive functions and processing speed. We translated the connectome concept from the neuroimaging field to cognitive data, demonstrating its potential to advance our understanding of the complexity of cognitive aging.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eloy Garcia-Cabello
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Lissett Gonzalez-Burgos
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain.,Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences, and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Joana B Pereira
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences, and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.,Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Juan Andres Hernández-Cabrera
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Eric Westman
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences, and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.,Department of Neuroimaging, Centre for Neuroimaging Sciences, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Giovanni Volpe
- Department of Physics, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - José Barroso
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Daniel Ferreira
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain.,Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences, and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.,Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Machado A, Barroso J, Molina Y, Nieto A, Díaz-Flores L, Westman E, Ferreira D. Proposal for a hierarchical, multidimensional, and multivariate approach to investigate cognitive aging. Neurobiol Aging 2018; 71:179-188. [PMID: 30149289 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2018.07.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2017] [Revised: 07/24/2018] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Cognitive aging is highly complex. We applied a data-driven statistical method to investigate aging from a hierarchical, multidimensional, and multivariate approach. Orthogonal partial least squares to latent structures and hierarchical models were applied for the first time in a study of cognitive aging. The association between age and a total of 316 demographic, clinical, cognitive, and neuroimaging measures was simultaneously analyzed in 460 cognitively normal individuals (35-85 years). Age showed a strong association with brain structure, especially with cortical thickness in frontal and parietal association regions. Age also showed a fairly strong association with cognition. Although a strong association of age with executive functions and processing speed was captured as expected, the association of age with visual memory was stronger. Clinical measures were less strongly associated with age. Hierarchical and correlation analyses further showed these associations in a neuroimaging-cognitive-clinical order of importance. We conclude that orthogonal partial least square and hierarchical models are a promising approach to better understand the complexity in cognitive aging.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alejandra Machado
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - José Barroso
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - Yaiza Molina
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain; Department of Clinical Psychology and Neuropsychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University Fernando Pessoa Canarias, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
| | - Antonieta Nieto
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - Lucio Díaz-Flores
- Department of Radiology, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - Eric Westman
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Daniel Ferreira
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Center for Alzheimer Research, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Clinical Psychology, Psychobiology and Methodology, Faculty of Psychology, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Kyllingsbæ S, Vangkilde S, Bundesen C. Editorial: Theories of visual attention-linking cognition, neuropsychology, and neurophysiology. Front Psychol 2015; 6:767. [PMID: 26124730 PMCID: PMC4464144 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2015] [Accepted: 05/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Søren Kyllingsbæ
- Department of Psychology, Center for Visual Cognition, University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Signe Vangkilde
- Department of Psychology, Center for Visual Cognition, University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Claus Bundesen
- Department of Psychology, Center for Visual Cognition, University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Abstract
In combination with whole report and partial report tasks, the theory of visual attention (TVA) can be used to estimate individual differences in five basic attentional parameters: the visual processing speed, the storage capacity of visual short-term memory, the perceptual threshold, the efficiency of top-down selectivity, and the spatial bias of attentional weighting. TVA-based assessment has been used in about 30 studies to investigate attentional deficits in a range of neurological and psychiatric conditions: (a) neglect and simultanagnosia, (b) reading disturbances, (c) aging and neurodegenerative diseases, and most recently (d) neurodevelopmental disorders. The article introduces TVA based assessment, discusses its methodology and psychometric properties, and reviews the progress made in each of the four research fields. The empirical results demonstrate the general usefulness of TVA-based assessment for many types of clinical neuropsychological research. The method's most important qualities are cognitive specificity and theoretical grounding, but it is also characterized by good reliability and sensitivity to minor deficits. The review concludes by pointing to promising new areas for clinical TVA-based research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Habekost
- Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen Denmark
| |
Collapse
|