Longitudinal stability in working memory and frontal activity in relation to general brain maintenance
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Updated: Aug 18, 2025

Working Memory Training for Older Participants: A Control Group Training Regimen and Initial Intellectual Functioning Assessment
Published on: September 20, 2020
Lars Nyberg1,2,3, Nina Karalija4,5, Goran Papenberg6
1Department of Radiation Sciences, Umeå University, 90187, Umeå, Sweden. Lars.Nyberg@umu.se.
Abstract:
Cognitive functions are well-preserved for some older individuals, but the underlying brain mechanisms remain disputed. Here, 5-year longitudinal 3-back in-scanner and offline data classified individuals in a healthy older sample (baseline age = 64-68 years) into having stable or declining working-memory (WM). Consistent with a vital role of the prefrontal cortex (PFC), WM stability or decline was related to maintained or reduced longitudinal PFC functional responses. Subsequent analyses of imaging markers of general brain maintenance revealed higher levels in the stable WM group on measures of neurotransmission and vascular health. Also, categorical and continuous analyses showed that rate of WM decline was related to global (ventricles) and local (hippocampus) measures of neuronal integrity. Thus, our findings support a role of the PFC as well as general brain maintenance in explaining heterogeneity in longitudinal WM trajectories in aging.
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