American Journal of Neuroradiology 28:226-235, February 2007
© 2007 American Society of Neuroradiology
BRAIN
Cognitive Aging, Executive Function, and Fractional Anisotropy: A Diffusion Tensor MR Imaging Study
a The Brain Resource International Database, The Brain Resource Company, Ultimo, Australia
b The Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Hospital, Westmead, Australia
c School of Psychological Medicine, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
d Department of Psychiatry, Centers for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, Brown Medical School, Providence, RI
e Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory and School of Psychology, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
Address correspondence to Dr. S.M. Grieve, The Brain Resource International Database, The Brain Resource Co, Ultimo, NSW, 2007, Australia; e-mail: sgrieve{at}gmp.usyd.edu.au
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Fractional anisotropy (FA) is a useful measure of connectivity in the brain that can be derived from the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) dataset. This study investigated the relationship between FA and selected measures of cognition across a broad age group to explore a possible structural basis for cognitive changes with age.
METHODS: FA images were generated from DTI data acquired at 1.5T in 87 healthy subjects (age range, 20–73 years). Relationships between a range of cognitive measures and FA were explored using regional and voxel-based analysis.
RESULTS: Age and regional average FA were significantly associated in the frontal, parietal, and temporal lobes but not in the occipital lobe. This negative relationship was especially prominent in the prefrontal regions of the frontal lobe, where FA declined at a rate of approximately 3% per decade. Decreased FA in the frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes was associated with poorer cognitive performance in executive maze and in an attention-switching task. A voxel-level analysis of these data revealed that the executive function-FA association was particularly strong and regionally delineated over 2 continuous, bilateral areas extending from the prefrontal cortex to the parietal lobe, with projections to the anterior portions of the thalamus.
CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate a relationship between FA and a measure of executive function—a core cognitive component that is a key feature of cognitive aging. We propose that that FA may provide an early means for the detection of age-related cognitive change and suggest a need for prospective data to explore this association.
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