Acute caffeine administration effect on brain activation patterns in mild cognitive impairment

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Previous research indicates caffeine boosts brain activity in healthy older adults.
• The impact of caffeine on cognition and brain function in early cognitive decline remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate caffeine's effects on brain activation and working memory in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) compared to healthy controls (HC).

Main Methods:

• A double-blinded, placebo-controlled fMRI study using an n-back task.
• Evaluated task-related activation, functional connectivity, perfusion, grey matter density, and white matter microstructure.
• 17 individuals with MCI and 17 age-matched HC, all regular caffeine consumers, received 200 mg caffeine or placebo.

Main Results:

• Caffeine induced focal prefrontal activation in HC, but a diffuse, posteromedial pattern in MCI.
• In MCI, caffeine enhanced functional connectivity in prefrontal, parietal, and subcortical regions.
• Baseline perfusion, grey matter, and white matter integrity did not differ significantly between groups.

Conclusions:

• Caffeine alters working memory brain activation patterns in MCI, potentially by shifting activity away from underperforming frontal regions.
• Findings suggest a compensatory mechanism in MCI, with caffeine-induced posterior activation potentially counterbalancing frontal lobe dysfunction.