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Development of white matter in young adulthood: The speed of brain aging and its relationship with changes in fractional anisotropy

  • 0Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
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October 3, 2024

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October 3, 2024

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

White matter microstructure continues developing into the early thirties. Faster brain aging in men correlates with decreased white matter integrity in specific tracts during young adulthood.

Area Of Science

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Radiology

Background

  • White matter (WM) development is crucial for cognitive function.
  • Most prior studies on WM development used cross-sectional data, neglecting biological age effects.
  • Longitudinal data is needed to understand WM maturation in young adulthood.

Purpose Of The Study

  • To investigate longitudinal changes in white matter microstructure (WM) using fractional anisotropy (FA).
  • To examine the relationship between WM development and brain aging measures (BrainAGE) in young adults.
  • To explore sex differences in WM development and brain aging.

Main Methods

  • Longitudinal multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study of 105 participants aged 23-30 years.
  • Fractional anisotropy (FA) analysis in white matter tracts using the JHU atlas.
  • Brain age gap estimation (BrainAGE) calculated from cortical thickness using the Neuroanatomical Age Prediction using R (NAPR) model.

Main Results

  • Demonstrated tract-specific increases and decreases in FA, indicating ongoing WM microstructure development in the third decade of life.
  • Significant interaction found between the speed of cortical brain aging, white matter tract, and sex on mean FA.
  • Accelerated cortical brain aging predicted greater decreases in FA in specific WM tracts (bilateral cingulum, left superior longitudinal fasciculus) in men.

Conclusions

  • White matter microstructure development is protracted into young adulthood.
  • The rate of brain aging influences white matter integrity, particularly in men.
  • These findings highlight the importance of longitudinal studies and biological age in understanding brain development.

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